HONG KONG- Currency markets paused for breath on Wednesday after a choppy few sessions as whipsawed markets looked to get a handle on the latest developments in eastern Europe amid a deepening crisis in Ukraine.
Away from the threat of a full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, the New Zealand dollar jumped 0.52 percent after the Reserve Bank of New Zealand raised interest rates, and said more tightening could be necessary.
The euro was holding steady at $1.1325, sterling was pinned at $1.3593, and the safe haven yen and Swiss franc also took a breather having dropped sharply as investors held out hopes a major war over Ukraine could be averted.
Western nations and Japan on Tuesday punished Russia with new sanctions for ordering troops into separatist regions of eastern Ukraine and threatened to go further if Moscow launched an all-out invasion of its neighbor.
One US dollar was worth 115.03 yen in Asia trade, with the greenback having climbed steadily overnight from its near three-week low of 114.48 hit Monday, and 0.9204 francs, after a 0.63 percent overnight rally.
This left the dollar index which measures the greenback against six peers little changed at 96.063.
“Despite the sanctions on Russia, the FX reaction has been quite muted,” said Carol Kong, a strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia. — Reuters
