Investor risk aversion following yesterday’s release of worse-than-expected consumer confidence data from the United States, helped to prop up the Japanese Yen, considered a “safe haven” currency. As reported at 3:09 p.m. (JST) in Tokyo, versus the U.S. Dollar the Japanese Yen gained nearly 1%, to trade at 90.20 Yen. The U.S. Dollar, another safe-haven currency, was able to hold onto earlier gains; the U.S. Dollar Index, a measure of the U.S. unit’s value versus major currencies, traded at 80.75 .DXY, near the 8-month high of 81.34 .DXY established last week.
One forex manager remarked that because the American economy isn’t as strong as it was thought to be, investors are averse to higher risk currencies and supporting the (U.S.) Dollar and Yen. Ben Bernanke, the Federal Reserve Bank Chairman, will appear before the U.S. Congress today, and market players will be keen to hear his testimony as to clues for the direction of U.S. interest rates.
Despite investor risk aversion, the Euro did manage to edge up against the U.S. Dollar, trading at $1.3543, an increase of .3%; yesterday, the Euro lost almost .7% against the greenback. Versus the Japanese Yen, the Euro traded up .3% to 122.18 Yen, paring some of yesterday’s losses when the Yen slipped 1.7%. In spite of gains today, the Euro remains under heavy pressure with continuing investor worries over Euro-zone fiscal troubles.