Dollar holds against yen ahead of US data

The dollar steadied near one-month highs against the Yen this morning as the market continued to bet on a solid recovery in the…

The dollar steadied near one-month highs against the Yen this morning as the market continued to bet on a solid recovery in the US economy despite an unexpected tumble in consumer confidence.

The greenback firmed to Yen 119.95 - its best since June 30th - and held near that level in Asia.

As of 9.46 a.m. (Irish time), the dollar was at Yen 119.83 against 119.84 in late US trade. The dollar was at $1.14 against the euro at the same time. The single currency was flat at Yen 137.08 yen.

Dollar bulls are hoping that they will be vindicated over the next couple of days, when the market will see a flood of US economic data.

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Friday's US jobs report is the most hotly anticipated, with the unemployment rate expected to fall by 0.1 percentage point to 6.3 per cent.

Other important data include the US Commerce Department's advance look at second-quarter gross domestic product tomorrow, which economists predict will rise 1.5 per cent.

On Friday, the Institute for Supply Management's July manufacturing activity index is expected to show expansion with a reading of 51.8.