Investing.com - The dollar extended gains against the yen on Wednesday as concerns over tensions between Russian and Ukraine continued to abate, and investors turned their attention to U.S. reports on jobs growth and service sector activity later in the session.
USD/JPY touched highs of 102.47, the highest since February 26 and was last up 0.23% to 102.45.
The pair was likely to find support at 101.75 and resistance at 102.80.
Risk appetite recovered as the threat of war between Russia and Ukraine eased after Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that a military deployment in Ukraine is not needed now.
Investors remained cautious with Russian forces still maintaining a military presence in Ukraine’s Crimea region, but diplomatic efforts to end the standoff continued.
Markets were looking ahead to a report on U.S. private sector jobs growth, and data from the Institute of Supply Management on service sector growth due out later in the trading day.
Market sentiment was boosted after data on Wednesday showed that euro zone private sector activity grew more rapidly than initially estimated in February, expanding at the fastest pace since June 2011.
A separate report showed that euro zone retail sales rose more strongly than forecast in January.
The euro was higher against the yen, with EUR/JPY rising 0.14% to 140.65, after falling to lows of 139.25 on Tuesday.
Elsewhere, the euro was lower against the dollar, with EUR/USD sliding 0.10% to 1.3729.
The common currency remained under pressure ahead of the European Central Bank’s meeting on Thursday, amid speculation that the bank may tighten monetary policy in order to safeguard the fragile recovery in the region.
Figures released last Friday showed the annual rate of inflation in the euro area was unchanged at 0.8% in February, well below the ECB's target of just under 2.0%.