Thursday, 19 Aug 2010

Forex News: Fears of BOJ Intervention Drives Yen Lower

The Japanese yen dipped against the US dollar on Thursday as jitters about whether Japanese authorities would take new steps to rein in the yen's rise left investors reluctant to chase it higher.

Investors are watching to see if the central bank will take more monetary easing steps - such as expanding liquidity - ahead of a meeting between Prime Minister Naoto Kan and Bank of Japan (BOJ) Governor Masaaki Shirakawa expected next Monday.

Meanwhile, much stronger-than-expected UK retail sales data this morning lifted the British pound and helped the euro off earlier lows against the greenback, though lingering concerns about the health of countries on the euro zone's periphery kept it in negative territory.