The dollar changed hands at 76.76 yen in Tokyo afternoon trade, marginally down from 76.82 yen in New York late Wednesday.

The euro was at $1.3715 and 105.20 yen in Tokyo, down from $1.3755 and 105.65 in New York.

The latest data from the United States failed to give a clear lead, with traders instead looking to speeches later Friday by Fed officials, said Sumino Kamei, senior analyst at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ.

The Federal Reserve Bank's "Beige Book" showed Wednesday a "modest" pick-up in the economy in September, with restrained hiring and a still-weak housing market.

But separate data showed housing construction surged by 15 percent in September to the highest level in 17 months.

"Sentiment is not that pessimistic nor is it that strong," Kamei told Dow Jones Newswires.

"So the expectations toward monetary policy are also mixed," which was helping keep the dollar-yen rate in a narrow range, she added.

The euro-dollar rate was also locked in a narrow band as investors wait for further developments in Europe to resolve its debt crisis, she said.

"What we know about the EFSF (the European Financial Stability Facility) expansion discussions is that we don't know anything for sure yet at this point," she said.

That has kept many investors from making major bets, Kamei said.

Uncertainty remains over whether progress will be made on the European debt crisis at a key summit this weekend.

Ahead of the meeting of European leaders, investors said they are confused by a succession of news headlines on supposed developments in tackling the crisis that seem to contradict each other.

"In the end, we'll have to wait for the outcome of these meetings," said Kosuke Hanao, a senior dealer at HSBC.

The dollar was firmer against Asian currencies.

The unit rose to Sg$1.2695 from Sg$1.2640 on Wednesday, to 1,144.35 South Korean won from 1,133.00 and to 30.95 Thai baht from 30.63.

It also firmed to Tw$30.25 from Tw$30.09, to 43.28 Philippine pesos from 43.18 and to 8,905.00 Indonesian rupiah from 8,845.00.