While the US Dollar earlier skidded during Asian trading on Friday, the Japanese Yen edged higher as investors moved into the safe haven currency. Analysts say that the increased volatility had FX traders jittery and seeking out the relative safety of the Yen. The US Dollar Index is trading at 89.790 .DXY, up 0.06%. The Index, a measure of the Dollar’s relative strength, had lost nearly 0.22% after gaining almost 2% after last week’s 3-year trough. The Index was pushed higher after the Federal Reserve minutes signaled the need for higher rates.
As reported at 10:06 am (JST) in Tokyo, the USD/JPY was trading at 106.792 Yen, off the session trough of 106.640 Yen while the peak is at 106.996 Yen. The EUR/JPY is trading at 131.609 Yen, down 0.01%; the pair has ranged from a session low of 131.5300 Yen to a peak of 131.8520 Yen.
Eurozone Inflation Date Eyed
In the Eurozone, the European Central Bank published its latest meeting minutes and said it anticipated inflation hitting the 2% target. That news helped the EUR/USD to surge to a session peak of $1.23374 while the low is at $1.23148; currently, the pair is trading at $1.2318. Later today, Eurostat will release the January inflation figures; analysts are forecasting CPI and Core CPI to remain flat at 1.3% and 1.0%, respectively.