Later that day the Commerce Department said USA first-quarter growth came in at nearly half the rate expected, fuelling worries about the global outlook and turning investors to safe-bet assets, such as the yen.
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It had been at 111.67 yen per dollar before Thursday’s surprise decision by the BOJ not to ease policy further.
Wheeler’s statement came after the Federal Open Market Committee kept the target range for its overnight lending rate at 0.25 percent to 0.5 percent, as expected, noting an improvement in the USA labour market and saying it remained confident inflation would rise to its 2 percent target over the medium term.
The U.S. dollar was on track for its biggest weekly percentage decline against the yen since the 2008 financial crisis in the aftermath of the Bank of Japan’s decision not to ease policy further, while strong euro zone growth data boosted the euro.
The dollar could fall to 105 yen in coming weeks as traders unwind “short” bets against the yen, analysts said. The US dollar fell to 0.9667 Swiss franc from 0.9715 Swiss franc, and it lost to 1.2518 Canadian dollars from 1.2606 Canadian dollars.
Only the Japanese yen was trading weaker against the dollar ahead of a BOJ’s policy decision, which is often announced around noon in Tokyo, or 0300 GMT, will be a close call.
Surprisingly strong first quarter growth figures from Spain and France supported the euro, pushing it above $1.14. South Korea’s Kospi shed 0.7 percent to 2,000.93 while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index eked out a 0.1 percent gain to 21,388.03.
At 1045 BST, Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 futures were down 0.8%, while Nasdaq futures were 0.6% lower.
The FTSEurofirst 300 index, which hit a three-month high last week, was down 0.3 percent, rising off its lows after the Wall Street open. The contract rose $1.29, or 2.9 percent, to settle at $45.33 a barrel on Wednesday, which was its highest price since December.
First quarter United States and European earnings reports continued to stream in.
Oil prices climbed to fresh 2016 highs, but the U.S. government’s first estimate of economic growth in the January-March quarterdisappointed at an anemic 0.5 per cent. Econoomists polled by Reuters were expecting 0.9 per cent growth.
“It’s just a continuation of momentum after the BOJ policy announcement”, said Vassili Serebriakov, currency strategist at BNP Paribas in NY. Brent crude futures were last trading at $47.19 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate futures were at $45.32 a barrel.
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But a year on from a German government bond sell-off that rocked markets, and with USA stocks at record highs and the US economy showing signs of weakening, there are also some concerns that May could bring another global market wobble.
