Yen Reverses Gains as Markets Eye Iran Deal and US Jobs Report

Currency markets were stable on Thursday, with the Japanese yen giving back some of its intervention-led gains and the US dollar holding near a six-week low. The yen had reached as high as 155.20 per dollar on Monday but was trading at around 157.88 on Thursday.

Economists say that despite the yen's recent decline, it remains undervalued and has a better chance of being propped up by intervention than in previous instances. The euro was steady at $1.1544 and sterling traded down 0.1% at $1.3454.

The markets are watching for developments on a proposed US-Iran deal, which could give Tehran control over inbound traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. However, there is no immediate comment from the US on the proposal, with President Donald Trump saying a deal to reopen the strait was imminent but US officials insisting they would never agree to Iran controlling access.

The focus will shift to Friday's US jobs report, which could provide clues on the Federal Reserve's interest rate path. A hot print in the employment data could lead to a new build-up of speculative longs on dollar-yen.