Yen gains as N Korea, Syria spark jitters

London

THE safe-haven yen rose broadly on Tuesday, as investors considered a spectrum of risks including possible US action in Syria and North Korea, and a resurgence in previously written-off contenders in France's presidential race. The possibility of some kind of US military action against North Korea in response to its weapons tests grew after US missile strikes against Syria last week in retaliation for a chemical weapons attack on civilians.

The Japanese currency rose as much as 0.4 per cent to 110.455 yen against the US dollar in morning trade in London, last trading at 110.62 yen. "We did see the yen strengthen and that reflects overall market uneasiness given the escalation of geopolitical risks we have surrounding Syria and North Korea," said Valentin Marinov, head of FX strategy at Credit Agricole in London.