By: Barbara Zigah
The common currency Euro and the Japanese Yen both fell against the U.S. Dollar in Asian trading today. Since last Friday, the Euro has tested and failed to breach $1.4000, with investors proceeding cautiously with the speculation that short dollar/long euro positions might be unwinding soon.
At 3:11 p.m. (JST) in Tokyo, the Euro traded at $1.3900, a decline of .2% and well off last Friday’s 8-month peak. Support is initially expected to be seen at $1.3825, with firm resistance at $1.4000.
Meanwhile, the Japanese Yen slipped to 81.52 Yen, a loss of .3%; earlier in the trading session, there was speculation that Japanese exporters might sell off the dollar near the 81.30 Yen mark.
A recent comment by Timothy Geithner, the Secretary of the U.S. Treasury, offered the dollar some support; he commented that the U.S. government would strive to perverse investor confidence in the strong U.S. Dollar, and that a strategy of dollar devaluation would not be engaged.
Analysts noted that the Secretary’s comments did little to offer enduring confidence in the greenback, especially given the currency’s decline in recent months. The U.S. Dollar Index, a gauge of the greenback’s strength versus a basket of major currencies, traded at 77.403 .DXY, an increase of .4%.