By Tatsuo Ito
The dollar held on to the small gains it made against the yen in Asia on Monday, but trading was directionless as many players refrained from big bets before Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen's testimony on Tuesday.
Japan's current account, the broadest measure of the country's transaction on trade and investment with the rest of the world, posted a surplus of Y3.31 trillion last year, down 31.5% from the previous year.
"The currency market didn't react much to the data, but it is fundamentally seen as a yen-selling factor," said Takahiro Iizuka, a trader at Mizuho Trust and Banking Co.
"Still, many Japanese people appear unwilling to take big bets ahead of a national holiday here and Ms. Yellen's speech on Tuesday," he added.
At 0450 GMT, the dollar was at Y102.45 against Y102.28 in late New York on Monday.
The U.S. economy created 113,000 jobs last month, far below the 189,000 expected by economists. But the unemployment rate ticked down to 6.6%, from 6.7% in December. The number of Americans participating in the labor force increased.
Traders here say Friday's jobs report on the whole was not weak enough to prompt the U.S. central bank to change its course toward a gradual trimming of its stimulus set in December.
"There will be no major change in the Fed's policy of scaling back its bond purchases by $10 billion a month," said Yuji Saito, director of foreign exchange at Credit Agricole in Tokyo.
"Since markets hate uncertainty, a measured reduction of its stimulus that could inhibit a spike in U.S. rates and minimise the adverse impact on stock markets is likely to support the dollar/yen rate," he added.
Meanwhile, Mr. Saito said it will take time before the greenback claws back to the Y104 level, as markets have digested Friday's worst-than-expected nonfarm payroll figure, which briefly knocked the dollar down to as low as 101.40 in New York Friday.
He said speculation could also grow soon that investors may bring home some of funds invested in the U.S. Treasurys at their redemption later this month. This may prevent the dollar from gaining sharply, he added.
The euro was at $1.3622 from $1.3624. The Wall Street Journal Dollar Index, which measures the dollar against a basket of currencies, was up 0.05 at 73.98.
Interbank Foreign Exchange Rates At 00:50 EST / 0450 GMT
