💎 Fed’s first rate cut since 2020 set to trigger market. Find undervalued gems with Fair ValueSee Undervalued Stocks

Yen edges up vs dollar, euro on safety buying

Published 11/13/2008, 10:47 PM

* Yen rebounds as investors tip-toe back after sharp fall

* Rally in Tokyo shares fails to dent the yen

* Weekend G20 meeting expected to provide little direction

By Kaori Kaneko

TOKYO, Nov 14 (Reuters) - The yen edged up against the dollar and the euro on Friday after a sharp fall the previous day, as investors tip-toed back to the perceived safety of the Japanese currency amid nagging concerns about the global credit crisis.

A rally on Wall Street the day before eased risk aversion and triggered a steep drop in the yen against the dollar and euro, but market players failed to find other reasons to move beyond short-covering, traders said.

"The anxiety caused by the financial market turmoil has not disappeared from the market's overall tone. So demand for the dollar and the yen driven by flight-to-safety will likely remain," said Yousuke Hosokawa, senior manager at Chuo Mitsui Trust and Banking.

"The market just can't brush away its worries about issues such as how large the losses by U.S. financial corporations will be and whether the $700 billion U.S bailout plan will suffice," he said.

A rally in Tokyo shares on Friday failed to dent the yen as it did not fully ease risk aversion, traders said.

The Nikkei stock average climbed 4.3 percent following the jump in U.S. stocks.

"The currency market's performance reflects investors' doubt over whether the rapid gains on Wall Street are sustainable. It is difficult to take a bearish view on the dollar and the yen," said Nobuaki Kubo, vice president at BBH Investment Services.

The market is expected to grow more risk-averse if the euro zone third-quarter gross domestic product deteriorates as expected, traders said. The data is due to be released later on Friday.

Euro zone GDP for the quarter is seen contracting 0.2 percent, bringing the annual rate of growth down to 0.7 percent.

On Thursday, data showed German GDP contracted by 0.5 percent in the third quarter, putting Europe's biggest economy into recession for the first time in five years

The Group of 20 developed and emerging nations are meeting this weekend in Washington to discuss steps to address the financial crisis, but traders said the outcome is not expected to provide much direction to the market.

The dollar fell 0.6 percent to 97.15 yen from 98.10 yen in early trade. Traders said that real demand for the yen from exporters rose when the Japanese currency fell sharply the previous day.

The euro dipped 0.6 percent to 123.99 yen on trading platform EBS after rising as high as 125.72 in early trade. The single currency dropped to a two-week low below 118 yen on Thursday.

The single European currency edged down 0.1 percent to $1.2758 but stayed above a two-week low of $1.2388 hit the previous day. (Additional reporting by Shinichi Saoshiro; Editing by Sophie Hardach)

Latest comments

Risk Disclosure: Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.
© 2007-2024 - Fusion Media Limited. All Rights Reserved.