TOKYO — The dollar was steady in Asian trade Wednesday as investors focused on Greece's financial troubles, dealers said.
The dollar stood at 90.43 yen in Tokyo afternoon trade, compared with 90.39 in New York late Tuesday. The euro was almost flat at 1.3958 dollars compared with 1.3959 but edged up to 126.25 yen from 126.17.
"The focus of investors is on the euro," said Masatsugu Miyata, forex dealer at Hachijuni Bank. "The market overall is in a lull before the US jobs report."
The European Commission will issue Wednesday its opinion on the budget Greece has proposed to cut its runaway public deficit and mountain of debt, which have shaken the single European currency.
In Athens, Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou has vowed to do "everything necessary" to pull the eurozone member out of a fiscal hole that has hurt its standing on the financial markets.
European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso said on Tuesday that Greece's plan was "feasible but subject to risks."
"Recent comments by the Greek prime minister suggest that the government is in the process of speeding up the implementation of its reforms," Barclays Capital wrote in a note to clients.
But it also warned the European currency "is likely to remain volatile and under pressure for the time being."
Investors were also waiting for monetary policy decisions from the European Central Bank and the Bank of England on Thursday and US non-farm payroll figures for January on Friday.
Against Asian currencies, the dollar fell to 1,152.75 South Korean won from 1,159.60 a day earlier, to 33.08 Thai baht from 33.13, and to 9,342.00 Indonesian rupiah from 9,375.00.
The greenback also fell to 1.4103 Singapore dollars from 1.4114, to 31.99 Taiwan dollars from 32.05 and to 46.23 Philippine pesos from 46.66.
