Most Asian currencies kept to a tight range on Friday, while the dollar steadied following somewhat mixed comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on the path of interest rates.<\/p>\n
Persistent concerns over the Israel-Hamas war also kept traders largely wary of risky assets, especially amid growing fears over a bigger conflict in the Middle East.<\/p>\n
Powell\u2019s comments were seen as somewhat dovish, as the Fed Chair said that a recent spike in bond yields was helping tighten financial conditions, lessening the need for more rate hikes.<\/p>\n
But Powell still left the door open for at least one more rate hike this year, amid resilience in the U.S. economy and sticky inflation levels.<\/p>\n
The\u00a0dollar index<\/a><\/span>\u00a0and\u00a0dollar index futures<\/a><\/span>\u00a0logged some losses after Powell\u2019s speech, but steadied in Asian trade on Friday. The greenback was still set to close the week about 0.4% lower, as traders locked in some recent profits.<\/p>\n U.S. Treasury yields also saw extended losses on Friday as a recent rally paused, although the\u00a010-year rate<\/a><\/span>\u00a0remained within spitting distance of the 5% level.<\/p>\n Regional currencies saw some relief in overnight trade as the dollar retreated. But this was limited, with most units moving in a flat-to-low range on Friday. Most currencies were also set to end the week unchanged.<\/p>\n The\u00a0Japanese yen<\/a><\/span>\u00a0was flat after data showed that\u00a0consumer price index inflation<\/a><\/span>\u00a0grew more than expected in September.<\/p>\n While overall inflation still eased, a core reading followed by the Bank of Japan remained near 40-year highs, indicating that underlying inflation still remained largely elevated.<\/p>\n The\u00a0Indian rupee<\/a><\/span>\u00a0fell slightly, with any overnight gains being largely offset by higher oil prices. The\u00a0South Korean won<\/a><\/span>\u00a0rose 0.2%, but was down for a second consecutive week.<\/p>\n The\u00a0Australian dollar<\/a><\/span>\u00a0fell 0.1%, tracking recent declines in commodity prices. But the dollar was also set to add 0.5% this week, as it recovered from a near one-year low hit earlier in October.<\/p>\n The\u00a0Chinese yuan<\/a><\/span>\u00a0fell slightly on Friday as the People\u2019s Bank of China held its benchmark\u00a0loan prime rate<\/a><\/span>\u00a0at record lows.<\/p>\n The move came as data earlier this week showed some improvement in Chinese\u00a0economic growth<\/a><\/span>\u00a0through the third quarter. But this was insufficient in boosting the yuan, which remained close to a near 16-year low hit earlier in October.<\/p>\nChinese yuan flat as PBOC keeps rates on hold<\/h3>\n