The risk-off theme in markets today gave the yen a lift and put yen crosses under pressure since the start of the session. Dollar-yen opened at Y102.09 and then got itself stuck in a narrow Y102.03 to Y102.16 range in early dealings. A lower open in Japanese stocks weighed on dollar-yen while data releases earlier in the session had little lasting impact on the pair. Dollar-yen was pressed down through Y102.00 after President Barack Obama announced he had authorized airstrikes in Iraq as geopolitical worries drove yen crosses broadly lower. Dollar-yen fell to a Y101.60 low after that. Yen crossesrecovered a bit after China’s trade data were released and dollar-yen tracked back up toward Y101.90. The BOJ’s policy decision then saw dollar-yen retrace again to Y101.80, and it was last at Y101.79 with eyes now on BOJ Governor Kuroda’s regular post-meeting news conference later today.
