LONDON, Oct 21 - The dollar backed off a four-month peak against the yen on Monday as the yen got a lift from an upgrade in Japan's foreign credit rating, while the euro shrugged off a key vote backing European enlargement. Rating agency Moody's Investors Service raised Japan's foreign currency debt ceiling to the top Aaa grade from Aa1, a move it said reflected a change in its methodology analysing country ceilings.
Analysts said the upgrade provided an opportunity for dollar profit taking and said the focus remained on U.S. quarterly earnings and the performance of U.S. stocks.
"We have big names reporting. If history is anything to go by we could get better than expected figures out this week and that should give some support to equities and the dollar," said Mitul Kotecha, head of global foreign exchange research at Creidt Agricole Indosuez. "Equities have gone up 14 percent since the bottom, though, so further gains could be limited. But the dollar looks in good shape overall."
By 0752 GMT the dollar was down 0.5 percent at 124.88 yen after peaking at 125.64 earlier in the session, its highest since mid-June. The euro was almost unchanged from late Friday's levels at $0.9723, having dipped to a one-month low below $0.97 in Asian trade.///www.forbes.com