Market News
Dollar dithers as safety bid flows to the yen - REUTERS
Summary
- Dollar doesn't bounce despite stocks' drop
- Yen hits 5-month high of 146.55/dollar
- Yuan ticks higher; euro holds on above $1.08
SINGAPORE, March 11 (Reuters) - The yen was investors' safe harbour of choice on Tuesday and it touched a five-month high as fears about a tariff-driven slowdown in U.S. economic growth have rattled U.S. stocks and the dollar.
The Nasdaq (.IXIC) fell 4% overnight and the S&P 500 (.SPX) slid 2.7% as equities caught up with what bonds and currencies have been saying for weeks: U.S. growth is going to slow down. The yen made a five-month peak of 146.55 per dollar before steadying around 147.24. China's yuan also rose, ticking 0.2% higher to 7.2426 per dollar.
Other moves in the foreign exchange market were more muted, and analysts noted that a lot of the shifts in currencies had already happened.
The dollar is down more than 7% from a six-month high it hit in January versus the yen and the greenback's apparently dulled lustre as a safe-haven coincides with a big rally in the euro and a broader re-think of how tariffs and a trade war play out in FX markets.
The risk-sensitive Australian dollar was a modest loser on Monday and loitered around its 50-day moving average at $0.6266 on Tuesday. Sterling was holding on above its 200-day moving average at $1.2875 and the euro was steady just above $1.08.
