The US dollar was softer against the yen and euro in subdued afternoon trading here as players awaited the release later today of the results of the US Federal Reserve's Beige Book survey and the US trade data for August, dealers said. At 3.42 pm here (0742 GMT), the dollar was at 119.36 yen, down from 119.60 yen in Sydney just over three hours earlier. The euro was at 1.2560 usd, up from 1.2533 usd in Sydney. The results of the Beige Book survey, being released two weeks before the Federal Reserve's next policy meeting, are expected to give some guidance as to the Fed's future policy direction, dealers said. "The lack of market conviction to the course of Fed action and mixed messages from the flow of US data should translate into a lack of market impetus to break into clear directional trends," J P Morgan Chase Bank said in a market note. "In this environment, carry attraction is expected to remain a dominant market driver." The Bank of Japan's policy board started its regular two-day meeting today, and its decision is expect by noon here (0400 GMT) tomorrow. Most analysts expect the Bank of Japan to keep interest rates on hold this time round, while a few are allowing for the possibility of increases before the end of the year. Bank of Japan governor Toshihiko Fukui's press briefing, scheduled after tomorrow's policy announcement, will probably garner more attention from the market, dealers said. Fukui told a parliamentary panel today that the central bank would raise interest rates only slowly. "The central bank chief showed little inclination to deviate from the bank's mantra about future rate adjustments being slow and careful, suggesting tomorrow's events could well prove anti-climactic," UBS said in a market note.