By MarketWatch TOKYO (MarketWatch) -- The dollar edged up against major rivals in Asian trading Friday, as investors covered positions ahead of a three-day weekend in Japan. Tokyo markets will be closed Monday for the spring equinox holiday. The dollar rose to 90.43 yen, from 90.30 yen in North American trade late Thursday. DXY 80.31, +0.09, +0.11% 9085807570 10MJSNF The euro bought 122.98 yen, compared to 122.95 yen late Thursday. Against the dollar, the European unit slipped to $1.3604, down from $1.3620. The dollar index (DXY 80.31, +0.09, +0.11%) , which measures the U.S. unit against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, rose to 80.361, up from 80.228 late Thursday. Meanwhile, a Chinese official fired another salvo in the ongoing U.S./China currency dispute, in which U.S. politicians have said they believe the Chinese currency is undervalued. He Ning, head of the Department of American and Oceanian Affairs at China's Ministry of Commerce, said Friday that China's purchases of the U.S. government debt have helped stabilize U.S. capital markets, and trade between the two nations has also created U.S. service jobs, according to Dow Jones Newswires. Ning was "basically warning the U.S. to back off as speculation mounts that it could be named as a currency manipulator by the U.S. Treasury," analysts at Action Economics said. On Thursday, the dollar rose by the most in a month amid signs of increasing tensions within Europe over an aid plan for the debt-strapped Greek government. See Thursday's Currencies report.

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