Dollar rises in Asia on upbeat US data

TOKYO: The dollar rose against the yen in Asia Thursday following another batch of upbeat US data that has fuelled speculation the Federal Reserve will announce a further cut to its stimulus this month.

The greenback bought 104.73 yen in Tokyo afternoon trade, up from 104.59 yen in New York on Wednesday. And the euro climbed to 142.64 yen from 142.29 yen, rebounding after taking a hit in Europe after the release of weak German growth data.

The single currency also strengthened to $1.3621 from $1.3606.The dollar also climbed against its Australian counterpart in response to a report out of Canberra showing the economy lost 22,600 jobs last month. The "Aussie" fell to 87.96 US cents, a three-year low, from 89.03 cents the day before.

On Wednesday, the Fed released its "Beige Book" survey that showed the US economy grew at a "moderate" pace across most regions at the end of 2013, with muted price and wage rises.

Adding to the upbeat tone for traders was the Federal Reserve Bank of New York´s general business conditions index that showed manufacturing activity in New York state reached its highest level in more than a year.

Also, the Labor Department reported that its producer price index rose 0.4 percent, slightly above estimates.

The reports came after the World Bank raised its growth forecast for the global economy, and as the US House of Representatives approved a $1.1 trillion spending bill for fiscal year 2014, capping months-long negotiations and marking a truce in three years of fiscal battles plaguing Washington.

The upbeat news followed weak US jobs data last week which dented speculation that the Fed would continue to scale back its monthly-bond buying scheme.

In December, the bank said it would reduce the easing measures by $10 billion to $75 billion in January. A reduction of the stimulus programme is a positive for the dollar as it means there is less cash in the financial system.

"Consensus is being formed that the US jobs data don´t reflect the actual status of the US economy," said Toshihiko Sakai, a senior manager of forex at Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking.

Markets are looking to US jobless claims later in the day for more clues about the employment market.

"Even if the outcome just matches the market expectation, it should push up the dollar, especially because it´s after the poor jobs data last week." Praevidentia Strategy´s Masafumi Yamamoto told Dow Jones Newswires.

The greenback was higher against other Asia-Pacific currencies.

It rose to Sg$1.2737 from Sg$1.2712 on Wednesday, to 1,063.70 South Korean won from 1,062.79 won, and to 45.06 Philippine pesos from 44.99 pesos.

It also gained to 61.62 Indian rupees from 61.57 rupees, to 12,120 Indonesian rupiah from 12,078 rupiah, and to 32.90 Thai baht from 32.86 while being unchanged at Tw$30.09.The Chinese yuan was at 17.28 yen against 17.24 yen. (AFP)