Yen hits five month low on euro

The yen remained on the defensive today with the euro hitting a five-month high on the Japanese currency, as the dollar nursed losses after a setback last week, reports Reuters.

The euro hit a high point of 110.15 at one stage on trading platform EBS, the highest it has been since late October. Its gains later paired and was last trading at 109.91 yen, remaining steady from late trade in the US on Friday.

In a further sign of the recent weakness of the yen, the Australian dollar increased to 88.62 yen, the highest point it has hit since May last year. The Australian dollar was last at 88.4 yen, a rise of 0.2 per cent from late trade in the US on Friday.

The status of the yen as the choice currency in funding carry trades was cemented in February following the Bank of Japan’s surprise easing. In addition, the US Treasury yield’s recent surge has made the dollar less appealing versus the yen as a funding currency.

Due to this, currency speculators have raised their bets against the Japanese currency. Their net short position for the yen increased to 42,380 contracts for the week ending 13 March, the highest it has been in 11 months, revealed data released on Friday from the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission.