China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, and Singapore were shut for the Lunar New Year holiday, with Chinese markets set to remain closed until next week

Most Asian currencies weakened on Tuesday as market holidays kept trading volumes thin.

China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, and Singapore were shut for the Lunar New Year holiday, with Chinese markets set to remain closed until next week.

The yen’s USD/JPY pair dropped 0.2%, recovering slightly from sharp losses in the prior session after gross domestic product data read substantially weaker than expected for the fourth quarter.

The numbers raised concerns over slowing Japanese growth, and drummed up expectations of more stimulus measures from Tokyo.

The yen also took some support from reports stating that the Bank of Japan was likely to raise interest rates by as soon as April.

Among other Asian currencies, the Australian dollar’s AUD/USD pair dropped slightly after the minutes of the Reserve Bank of Australia’s February meeting showed policymakers remained uncommitted towards raising interest rates further after a 25-basis point hike.

But they flagged continued caution over sticky Australian inflation, with any further price hikes likely to invite more tightening.

The yuan’s USD/CNH offshore pair gained 0.1% but remained close to near three-year lows. The Singapore dollar’s USD/SGD and the won’s USD/KRW pairs were flat in holiday trade.

The Indian rupee’s USD/INR pair was flat but advanced further above the 90-rupee point. The rupee took little support from stronger-than-expected consumer inflation data released last week.

Meanwhile, the U.S. dollar caught some bids before a swathe of economic cues due this week. Gains in the dollar also came amid thin trading volumes, following a Monday holiday in the country’s markets. This in turn made for few trading cues for Asian markets.