The U.S. dollar was lower in Asian trading early Wednesday after weakening against the Japanese yen and the euro in overnight trading in New York amid lack of market-moving economic news.
The dollar was trading at 108.13 yen at late morning in Tokyo, down 0.72 yen from late Tuesday and unchanged from the 108.13 yen it bought in New York later that day.
The euro rose to US$1.2859 Wednesday morning from US$1.2823 late Tuesday but fell to 139.11 yen from 139.39 yen.
The greenback also dipped against most Asian currencies. The dollar slipped to 54.625 Philippine peso from 54.750, and to 1,016.2 South Korean won from 1,017.5. The dollar also weakened against the Thai baht, from 39.535 to 39.490.
Overnight in New York, the dollar slipped against its major counterparts in calm trading, with no major economic news or indicators affecting the market.
The New York currency market was unaffected by a speech by Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, despite his upbeat tone on future oil prices.
The market was largely unfazed by news about the April 15-16 Group of Seven industrialized nations meeting. A U.S. Treasury Department spokesman said late Monday that the United States will restate its "strong dollar policy" but that the focus at the G7 meeting in Washington will not be on currency matters.