Dollar gains further
Afp, Tokyo
The dollar traded near a four-and-a-half year high against the yen in Asian trade Friday as Japan's central bank unanimously kept its super-low interest rates unchanged, dealers said. They said the market was on tenterhooks ahead of US inflation data that could prove key to whether the Federal Reserve hikes its key lending rate again any time soon. The dollar was at 123.00 yen in Tokyo afternoon trade, up from 122.88 yen in New York late on Thursday, when the US unit briefly crossed the 123-yen line for the first time since December 2002. The euro edged up to 1.3322 dollars from 1.3310 and to 163.83 yen from 163.57. The Bank of Japan on Friday unanimously left interest rates at 0.5 percent, the lowest among major economies. While the decision was widely expected amid tepid inflation, some analysts had predicted a split vote.
| 
