US dollar little changed against euro, pound as focus on Brexit

[TOKYO] The US dollar was little changed against the euro and pound but rose against the yen in Asian trade on Thursday with volatility subsiding as market players await fresh trading cues.

Focus turned to the outcome of a policy meeting by the Bank of England later Thursday and, longer term, to a meeting of Group of Seven finance ministers and central bank governors that starts late next week in Japan, analysts said.

Attention in London will be focused on what BoE Governor Mark Carney says about the potentially destabilising Brexit vote on leaving the European Union, which is just six weeks away.

"Markets are waiting for fresh factors to trade on," Yuji Saito, head of the foreign-exchange department at Credit Agricole, told Bloomberg News.

"The next focus is G7, (and) Brexit risks in June, so markets are likely to take to the sidelines."

In early afternoon Tokyo dealings, the dollar rose to 108.60 yen from 108.39 yen on Wednesday in New York.

The euro also gained against the Japanese currency, climbing to 124.11 yen from 123.85 yen.

The single currency was at US$1.1425, down from US$1.1426 overnight in US trade as Europe saw waning optimism over bailout talks between Greece and the eurozone.

Sterling fetched US$1.4441 in Tokyo on Thursday against US$1.4447 late Wednesday in New York.

AFP