The Japanese currency slipped Friday, with investors watching for any comments by world finance officials about Japan's recent launch of an aggressive monetary easing program. The dollar changed hands at 98.43 yen during Asian hours, slightly higher than ¥98.23 late Thursday in North American trade. The euro traded at ¥128.60, compared with ¥128.30. Finance ministers and central bank officials from the Group of 20 major economies will meet again on Friday in Washington after gathering on Thursday. Haruhiko Kuroda, the newly appointed head of the Bank of Japan, said on Thursday he planned to tell his G-20 colleagues that the country's new easing program is aimed at reflating the economy, not weakening the yen for competitive purposes. The dollar has jumped against the yen, nearly reaching the ¥100 level, after the Bank of Japan earlier this month outlined a two-year campaign to defeat deflation that's been plaguing the economy for more than 15 years. Last Friday, the U.S. Treasury warned Japan “to refrain from competitive devaluation and targeting its exchange rate for competitive purposes." Kuroda, for his part, doesn't “expect to hear much discussion about Japan's monetary policy fueling the global currency war," at the meeting, he told reporters. G-20 finance ministers will repeat a pledge to avoid devaluing their currencies to get an advantage over other countries in international trade, according to a draft statement reported by Bloomberg BNA on Thursday. Japan's easing program did win praise Thursday from International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde, who called it “positive." The IMF and the World Bank have started their sprint meetings in Washington. About the European Central Bank, Lagarde said it was the only major central bank in the world that “clearly still has room for maneuver," in easing monetary policy. She also pressed European leaders to work harder to bolster growth. The euro on Friday traded at $1.3063, up from $1.3054. The euro on Thursday recovered some ground following a sharp loss the previous day spurred by anticipation of an interest-rate cut from the European Central Bank. The ICE dollar index , a measure of the dollar against a basket of six other major currencies, fell to 82.519, pulling back from 82.537 Thursday. The WSJ Dollar Index , a rival gauge that uses a slightly larger basket, was at 73.71, little changed from 73.70. In other major pairs, the British pound changed hands at $1.529, rising from $1.528. The Australian dollar was at $1.322 compared with $1.030 on Wednesday.Marketwatch
