Dollar firms in Asia amid thin trade

TOKYO: The dollar firmed against major currencies in Asian trade on Wednesday, with its movements limited as many traders were off for the summer holiday season.

The dollar fetched 102.29 yen in midday Tokyo trade, compared with 102.24 yen in New York.

The euro bought $1.3365 and 136.72 yen against $1.3368 and 136.67 yen.Investors were primarily focused on Japan´s GDP data with many traders away.

Minutes before the opening bell, the Japanese government announced that the world´s number three economy shrank by 1.7 percent quarter-on-quarter in the April-June period as a sales tax hike dented activity.

"Eyes will also be on China´s retail sales and industrial production data for July," followed later in the day by US retail sales data, Kengo Suzuki, chief currency strategist at Mizuho Securities, told Dow Jones Newswires. In New York on Tuesday, the euro weakened against the dollar following a plunge in investor confidence to a 20-month low in Germany, Europe´s largest economy. The ZEW research institute´s indicator of economic sentiment in Germany dived 18.5 points to 8.6 points in August, its lowest level since December 2012. Analysts had expected only a minor fall.

The institute said the decline was "likely connected to the ongoing geopolitical tensions," suggesting the Russia-Ukraine crisis and turmoil in the Middle East were weighing on the economy.