Investing.com - The dollar was steady against the euro on Wednesday ahead of a keenly anticipated report on euro zone inflation, while the yen firmed up after the Bank of Japan held off implementing fresh stimulus measures.
The euro was trading close to one-week lows against the dollar, with EUR/USD dipping 0.07% to 1.3802.
The euro weakened broadly on Tuesday after subdued German inflation data added to pressure on the European Central Bank to take steps to tackle low inflation in the euro zone.
German consumer prices fell 0.2% this month, and increased 1.3% on a year-over-year basis, compared to forecasts for an annual increase of 1.4%.
The annual rate of inflation in the region slowed to a record low 0.5% in March. The ECB targets an inflation rate of close to but just under 2%. The ECB targets an inflation rate of close to but just under 2%. The ECB has warned that it could launch a "broad-based" asset purchase program if the medium-term inflation outlook deteriorated.
Meanwhile, USD/JPY touched lows of 102.29 and was last down 0.13% to 102.50.
At the conclusion of its two-day policy meeting earlier, the BoJ stuck to its pledge to target an annual increase in the monetary base of between ¥60 trillion and ¥70 trillion, as expected.
Market participants were looking ahead to the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy statement later Wednesday. The U.S. central bank was expected to stick to its current timetable for tapering its asset purchase program.
Sterling was almost unchanged, with GBP/USD trading at 1.6818, not far from the four-and-a-half year peaks of 1.6856 reached on Monday. USD/CHF was steady at 0.8837.
Elsewhere, the Australian and New Zealand dollars were higher, with AUD/USD up 0.26% to 0.9292 and NZD/USD rising 0.16% to 0.8565. USD/CAD was flat at 1.0944.
The US Dollar Index, which tracks the performance of the greenback versus a basket of six other major currencies, was steady at 79.91.