Dollar Steady, Yen Retreats from 7-Month High

The dollar was steady on Wednesday, dragging the yen away from a seven-month peak as currency markets regained a semblance of calm in a week that began with a massive shakeout in assets driven by recession fears and unwinding of popular carry trades. The US dollar index, which measures the greenback against six rivals, eased to 102.94 but is up from the seven month low of 102.15 it touched on Monday. The yen was 1% lower at 146.43 per dollar in early trading, inching away from the seven month high of 141.675 it touched on Monday. The euro was little changed at $1.092675, while sterling last fetched $1.26985 in Asian hours, not far from the five-week low it hit in the previous session. In other currencies, the Australian dollar was 0.24% higher at $0.6534, a day after the central bank ruled out the possibility of an interest rate cut this year, saying core inflation is expected to come down only slowly. The New Zealand dollar was up 0.74% at $0.5998 following strong jobs data. (QNA) Source: Qatar News A gency