Bloomberg, (11/11) -- The dollar held a two-week gain versus the yen
before Federal Reserve officials speak amid signs the U.S. economy may
be strong enough for the central bank to taper monetary stimulus.The
greenback remained higher after jobs data last week topped economist
forecasts, boosting benchmark Treasury yields. Federal Reserve Bank of
Minneapolis President Narayana Kocherlakota and Atlanta peer Dennis
Lockhart will speak tomorrow. The yen held losses versus most major
currencies after Japan reported a record seasonally-adjusted current
account deficit in September and a wider-than-estimated trade gap.The
dollar was little changed at 98.98 yen as of 10:48 a.m. in Tokyo after
climbing 1 percent to 99.05 on Nov. 8. It has gained 1.7 percent over
the past two weeks. The U.S. currency was little changed at $1.3360 per
euro. The euro fell 0.1 percent to 132.24 yen.Kocherlakota is
scheduled to speak tomorrow on monetary policy and will take questions
following his address. He said Oct. 17 that officials must do “whatever
it takes” to push for a faster return to full employment while keeping
inflation near 2 percent, including possibly providing more stimulus.Lockhart said Nov. 8 that the Fed will consider reducing its bond-buying program at next month’s policy meeting.U.S.
employers added 204,000 workers in October, compared with a Bloomberg
News survey median for a 120,000 gain, a report last week showed. The
jobless rate rose to 7.3 percent from an almost five-year low.
