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Asian currencies traded in a narrow range on Friday as the U.S. dollar rebounded modestly from a near four-year low, following comments from U.S. President Donald Trump that he would announce his nominee for the next Federal Reserve Chairman later in the day. Despite the dollar’s late recovery, most Asian currencies were on track to post strong gains for January, reflecting a broad shift by traders away from the greenback amid rising global uncertainty.
The U.S. dollar has been under sustained pressure this month as concerns over Trump’s economic policies, fiscal health, and escalating geopolitical tensions weighed heavily on sentiment. Investors increasingly rotated into gold, physical assets, and regional currencies, driving the dollar index to its worst monthly performance since August 2025, with losses of around 1.8%.
Among Asian currencies, the Australian dollar emerged as the strongest performer, with the AUD/USD pair rising nearly 5% in January. Although the pair slipped about 0.6% on Friday, it remained close to a two-year high. The Australian dollar was supported by expectations that the Reserve Bank of Australia will raise interest rates by at least 25 basis points at its upcoming policy meeting, following a sharp uptick in fourth-quarter inflation data. Signs of resilience in the Australian economy have further strengthened the case for tighter monetary policy.
The Japanese yen also posted solid gains this month as speculation grew over potential government intervention to stabilize currency markets. The USD/JPY pair declined about 1.8% in January, although it rebounded slightly on Friday after Tokyo inflation data showed a sharp slowdown, potentially complicating the Bank of Japan’s rate hike outlook.
The Chinese yuan benefited from sustained dollar weakness, with USD/CNY touching its strongest level in nearly three years, aided by firm midpoint fixings from the People’s Bank of China. In contrast, the Indian rupee lagged behind its regional peers, hitting record lows and falling more than 2% this month due to concerns over slowing economic growth and stalled U.S.-India trade talks.
Elsewhere, the South Korean won and Singapore dollar both posted monthly gains, reflecting broader strength across Asian currencies despite short-term volatility in global markets.
