Investing.com - The dollar slid against the yen on Friday after the standoff between Russia and Ukraine intensified, though better-than-expected U.S. consumer sentiment numbers cushioned the greenback's losses.
In U.S. trading, USD/JPY was down 0.20% and trading at 102.13, up from a session low of 101.96 and off a high of 102.50.
The pair was expected to test support at 101.87, the low from April 17, and resistance at 102.73, Tuesday's high.
Tensions in Ukraine continued to brew on Friday after Ukrainian troops killed several pro-Russian rebels on Thursday.
Russian troops, meanwhile, conducted military drills close to the border between the two countries.
In response, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said Washington was moving closer to slapping fresh sanctions on Moscow, which steered investors away from the dollar and into safe-haven yen positions.
Data out of the U.S., however, offset geopolitical tensions.
The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan's final April consumer sentiment index came in at 84.1, beating market expectations for a 83.0 reading. April's preliminary reading was 82.6.
The yen, meanwhile, was up against the euro and up against the pound, with EUR/JPY down 0.14% at 141.33, and GBP/JPY trading down 0.18% at 171.63.
The euro, meanwhile, battled monetary uncertainty at home.
European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said Thursday that the euro exchange rate is an "increasingly important factor" in monetary policy. The exchange rate is not a policy target in itself, but the bank’s monetary policy stance could be affected by a continued appreciation in the currency, Draghi added.
He also said the ECB could launch a "broad-based" asset purchase program if the medium-term inflation outlook deteriorated.