Asian currencies ended the week mixed against the dollar ahead of a major US economic stimulus plan expected to be unveiled next week.
JAPANESE YEN: The yen fell slightly against the dollar over the week as investors lacked direction in the face of mounting worries about the outlook for the global economy. Dealers said market players were waiting for the United States to map out a major economic stimulus plan.
The Japanese unit stood at 90.97 against the dollar at the close of daytime trading on Friday, down from 89.39 a week earlier. On Friday, investors were bracing for bad numbers for the US jobs data.
The US Labour Department later reported the US unemployment rate had reached a 16-year high of 7.6 percent in January from 7.2 percent in December after nearly 600,000 jobs were lost. "Investors are now looking to the economic stimulus plan that the United States prepares to unveil early in the week," The Nikkei Quick News said.
"Market players are expecting the US government to take more aggressive actions after seeing the bleak economic report," it added.
Saburo Matsumoto, chief forex strategist at Sumitomo Trust and Banking, said the greenback could shift into a higher trading range this week while the euro was expected to remain under pressure.
"The euro remains weak overall," Matsumoto said, given concerns about banks' exposure to an economic slump in eastern Europe and the dire state of the eurozone economy.
AUSTRALIAN DOLLAR: The Australian dollar closed Friday at 65.40 US cents, up from the previous week's close of 64.56 US cents, as the central bank reduced expectations of further large interest rate cuts.
The Australian unit was expected to trade below 66 US cents in the coming week, as the weakening national economy increased selling pressure, dealers said.
In its latest monetary policy statement, issued Friday, the Reserve Bank of Australia said an easing in monetary and fiscal policy was expected to cushion the economy from the global financial crisis. "It is likely that the slowdown in Australia will be less severe than in many of our trading partners," the bank said.
The bank slashed the official cash rate to a 45-year low last week, cutting 100 basis points to take total reductions since September to 400 basis points.
The Australian government also launched a 42-billion-dollar stimulus package last week, its second major response to the credit crunch. "We see the currency now capped at 66 US cents over the coming weeks," said ANZ economist Amber Rabinov. "The weakening Australian economy and swings in risk aversion mean that selling pressure will continue to weigh on the Australian dollar."
"The coming week's data flow is likely to limit any topside moves," she added.
Rabinov said the dollar was expected to trend downwards in the longer term, with an expansion of the government's bond issuance schedule to cover stimulus measures a strong argument for further weakness in the currency.
NEW ZEALAND DOLLAR: The New Zealand dollar ended the week at 51.03 US cents, up from 50.89 the previous week. The currency was buoyed by news that while unemployment had increased by a seasonally adjusted 10,000 to a total of 105,000 in the December quarter, employment was up 0.9 percent to 2.19 million.
"The jobs data wasn't as bad as some feared," said BNZ Capital currency strategist Danica Hampton said. "Unemployment kicked up to 4.6 percent, but employment was a lot stronger than expected largely due to an increase of part-time workers."
CHINESE YUAN: On the over-the-counter market, the yuan was at 6.8344 to the dollar Friday, compared to Thursday's finish of 6.8367, and a closing price of 6.8380 to the dollar the week before. The central bank had set the yuan central parity rate at 6.8371 to the dollar Friday, compared with 6.8360 on Thursday. The People's Bank of China allows a trading band of 0.5 percent on either side of the midpoint.
HONG KONG DOLLAR: The US-pegged Hong Kong unit was at 7.754 to the dollar, from 7.757 a week earlier.
INDONESIAN RUPIAH: The rupiah ended at 11,800 to the dollar, down from 11,425 the week before.
PHILIPPINE PESO: The peso rose to 47.195 to the dollar on Friday afternoon compared with 47.390 on January 30.
SINGAPOREAN DOLLAR: The Singaporean dollar was at 1.5064 to the US dollar on Friday from 1,5084 the previous week.
SOUTH KOREAN WON: The won closed at 1,383.80 won to the dollar Friday, compared with 1,379.50 won a week earlier. Foreign investors continued buying local stocks, boosting the South Korean unit, but importers were actively buying the greenback at 1,375 won, dealers said. The dollar is tipped to trade between 1,370 and 1,395 won in the coming week.
The South Korean currency last year depreciated by 25.7 percent against the dollar, the largest margin in 11 years, the central Bank of Korea said Friday.
TAIWAN DOLLAR: The Taiwan dollar closed at 33.750 against the US unit, up from 33.801 a week before the prolonged Lunar New Year holiday.
THAI BAHT: The baht weakened against the dollar over the past week as investors were concerned over economists' pessimistic projections for Thailand's economy, dealers said. The baht ended Friday at 35.01-02 to the dollar compared to the previous week's close of 34.96-97. Dealers said the Thai unit would remain below the 35 baht level in the coming week.