The yen’s USD/JPY pair edged down 0.1%, the yuan’s onshore pair USD/CNY was little changed, while the Australian dollar’s AUD/USD pair ticked up 0.1%
Asian currencies were mostly steady on Monday, while the Indian rupee weakened again, edging back toward record lows hit last week.
The rupee was among the underperformers as it hovered near the 90 rupees per dollar level, weighed by foreign portfolio outflows.
The USD/INR pair last traded 0.2% higher at 90.2 rupees as of 06:03 GMT, nearing last week’s record high of 90.5 rupees.
The move comes after the Reserve Bank of India on Friday cut its repo rate by 25 basis points to 5.25%.
The yen’s USD/JPY pair saw limited movement, edging down 0.1%. Revised third-quarter GDP figures on Monday showed the economy contracted more sharply than earlier estimated, driven by soft capital expenditure and weak exports.
The update did little to alter expectations that the Bank of Japan remains on track for a rate hike, with markets focusing on wage growth indicators and policymakers’ communication in the coming days.
In China, the yuan’s onshore pair USD/CNY was little changed after data showed the country’s November trade surplus widened, supported by a 5.9% jump in exports year-on-year while imports grew only modestly.
The numbers offered a constructive signal on global demand.
The won’s USDKRW pair dropped 0.3%, while the Singapore dollar’s USDSGD was largely unchanged.
The Australian dollar’s AUD/USD pair ticked up 0.1%.
Meanwhile, expectations for a December cut in the U.S. remained intact after recent PCE inflation data pointed to continued easing, reinforcing the case for a reduction.
The US Dollar Index, which measures the greenback against other currencies, dropped 0.2% in Asian trading.
But traders were reluctant to add risk ahead of the Fed’s final meeting of the year, noting that policymakers have sent mixed signals in recent speeches about the pace of future cuts.


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