U.S. Dollar Continues to be Under Pressure in Asia

The U.S. Dollar continues to be on the defensive in Asian trading today, following the rumor of a report suggesting that several oil-producing countries within the Gulf States are pushing for currency diversification away from the U.S. currency.

When approached, some of the countries denied that such a move had been proposed.  Nonetheless, the damage to the U.S. Dollar had already been done, and speculators believe that the currency’s slide will more than likely continue until such time as the global economic imbalance is resolved.

As reported at 3:16 p.m. (JST) in Tokyo, the U.S. Dollar Index, a measure of the U.S. currency’s strength versus a basket of six major currencies, edged up slightly to 76.384 .DXY, a .1% rise.  Last week the .DXY touched on a 3-week peak but had lost ground consistently since then.  Versus the Japanese Yen, the U.S. Dollar slipped to 88.73 Yen, a loss of .1% and nearing the 8-month trough hit last week.

Market players suggest that the Yen’s recent rise is due in part to a sale of shares by Nomura, a Japanese brokerage house, which is hoping to raise nearly $5 billion in capital.  They suggest that foreign demand for the Nomura shares is what is driving the Yen’s upward momentum.