Yen Rises After Attack in Northern Israel Sparks Risk Aversion

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The yen advanced for a second day against the dollar after rockets fired from Lebanon struck northern Israel, prompting investors to seek the perceived safety of Japanese assets.

Japan’s currency gained for a fourth day versus the euro on speculation Israel’s war with Hamas in the Gaza strip will engulf other parts of the Jewish country. The Swiss franc also rose against the euro and the dollar, while the British pound fell for the first day in four against the dollar on speculation the Bank of England will lower interest rates at a meeting today.

“This is a combination of problems in the Middle East and risk aversion,” said Gerrard Katz, head of foreign exchange trading in Hong Kong at Standard Chartered Plc, the U.K. bank that gets most of its profit from Asia. “It’s natural for the yen to strengthen, because it’s viewed as safe.”

The yen appreciated to 91.90 per dollar as of 7:32 a.m. in London from 92.65 late yesterday in New York. Against the euro, it strengthened to 125.39 from 126.42. The euro was little changed at $1.3644. The pound fell to $1.5066 from $1.5095. The yen may advance to 91.80 versus the dollar today, Katz said.

Against the euro, the Swiss franc appreciated to 1.4980 from 1.5025. The Swiss currency also strengthened to 1.0981 per dollar from 1.1015. Crude oil climbed as much as 1.4 percent to $43.24 a barrel, paring yesterday’s 12 percent decline, on concern the conflict will disrupt supplies from the world’s largest oil producing region.

From Bloomberg News.