Dollar Hesitates With ¥100 Level In Sight

Japan’s currency gained modestly against the U.S. dollar Wednesday, with the greenback taking a breather on its likely path up to the psychologically key 100-yen level.

The U.S. dollar  bought 99.03 yen during Asian trading, down from ¥99.26 late Tuesday in North American trading.

Earlier Tuesday, the yen traded at ¥99.65, a four-year low against the dollar, according to FactSet.

“We believe that it will only be a matter of time before [the 100-yen] level is taken out,” BK Asset Management managing director Kathy Lien said in a note.

The euro  also slipped against the yen after testing its own psychologically important level of ¥130. The currency traded at ¥129.57, down from ¥129.98 late Tuesday.

The yen has been under assault since the Bank of Japan last week outlined an aggressive monetary stimulus plan. The central bank’s aim is to add about $1.4 trillion to the economy over the next two years as it seek to end years of deflation in Japan.

Since the central bank’s policy announcement, the yen has dropped about 7% versus the greenback and has lost about 8% against the euro.

In a survey of 104 corporate leaders conducted by Nikkei, two-thirds of respondents predicted earnings improving at the yen’s current level.

Also, nearly a third of the executives said they would prefer to see the yen at a range of ¥95 to ¥100 against the dollar, ,the Nikkei reported Wednesday.

More than 90% of those surveyed also approved to some degree of the central bank’s latest monetary moves, according to the report.

In the wake of Bank of Japan’s easing plan, bond king Bill Gross has become bullish on 10-year U.S. Treasury debt  , according to a Wall Street Journal report on Tuesday.

Gross, who runs the world’s largest bond fund at Pacific Investment Management Co. , or Pimco, told the Journal in an email interview that the easing program will prompt Japanese investors to hunt for higher returns in other markets around the world, which will lead to higher asset prices, including those for U.S. Treasury bonds.

On Wednesday, the ICE dollar index , which measures the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, was down 0.1% at 82.323.

The WSJ Dollar Index  , which uses a slightly larger comparison basket, was little changed at 73.55, compared to late Tuesday’s 73.52.

The euro  edged lower against the dollar, trading at $1.3088, down from $1.3094, and the British pound   rose to $1.5334, compared to $1.5248.

Meanwhile, Australia’s dollar  edged higher after China swung to a trade deficit of $880 million in March as imports surged 14.1% from the year-ago period. The gain in imports was well above the Dow Jones Newswires estimate for growth of 6.1%.

The Aussie changed hands at $1.051, rising from $1.048 before the data were released, though near its late-Tuesday perch at 1.050. The Australian unit is often sensitive to economic news from China, Australia’s top trading partner.

Marketwatch