Bloomberg (20/10) -- The yen weakened
against all of its major peers after Japan’s exports trailed estimates
while Asian stocks climbed from a five-month high as investors weighed
the timing of a reduction in Federal Reserve stimulus. Copper fell.The yen declined 0.3 percent to 97.96
per dollar as of 11:06 a.m. in Tokyo, slipping against 16 major
counterparts. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index gained 0.2 percent, on course
for the highest close since May 21. Futures on the Standard & Poor’s
500 Index added 0.1 percent after the gauge reached a record on Oct.
18. Australia’s dollar snapped an eight-day rally to drop 0.2 percent
and copper futures in London lost 0.1 percent.The Bank of Japan will continue pumping
cash into the economy to spur inflation, Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said
today, after government data showed exports in September increased less
than economists forecast. The Fed won’t taper its monthly bond
purchasing program until March next year because the U.S. government
shutdown slowed fourth-quarter growth, according to a Bloomberg survey
of economists conducted Oct. 17-18.“The yen is probably leading the way as
far as losses versus the dollar are concerned,” said Sacha Tihanyi, a
senior currency strategist at Scotiabank in Hong Kong. “Equities are
doing a bit better. We haven’t seen a turn in the trade balance, which
is a little bit concerning.”
