SINGAPORE: The dollar held firm versus the yen on Monday, clinging to gains made late last week after better-than-expected US jobs data eased concerns about the outlook for the world's largest economy. US employment rose more than expected in April and hiring was much stronger than previously thought in the prior two months. The jobless rate also fell to 7.5 per cent, the lowest since December 2008, data showed on Friday. The dollar rose 0.1 per cent to 99.13 yen, after climbing 1 per cent on Friday. With the better-than-expected US jobs data bolstering risk sentiment, the yen is likely to stay on the defensive, especially on the crosses, said Satoshi Okagawa, senior global markets analyst for Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation in Singapore. "Rather than dollar strength, the sentiment is more along the lines of going risk-on. It feels like yen-selling with cross/yen pairs leading the way," Okagawa said. Against this backdrop, the dollar will probably trade roughly between 95 yen to 100 yen in the short term, he added. The yen had retreated broadly on Friday, with the higher-yielding Australian dollar having surged roughly 1.8 per cent versus the Japanese currency. The US dollar, which hit a four-year high of 99.95 yen in April after the Bank of Japan unveiled its drastic monetary stimulus, has seen its rally stall in recent weeks after facing stiff resistance near the psychologically important 100 level. Many market players expect the dollar to eventually rise beyond 100 yen, given the BOJ's pledge to inject $1.4 trillion into the economy in less than two years. The yen is likely to stay under pressure, but its decline could become more gradual, said a trader for a Japanese bank in Singapore. "Although the speed up to now has been fast, from here on the pace will probably become very slow," he said. The dollar has already risen roughly 25 per cent versus the yen from mid-November, when yen bears began ramping up their bets against the Japanese currency on expectations of aggressive BOJ easing and fiscal expansion. Volumes are likely to be lighter than usual on Monday, a public holiday in Japan and also a UK market holiday.

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