U.S. Dollar, Yen Climb On Virus Fears

The U.S. dollar and the Japanese yen advanced against their major counterparts in the Asian session on Wednesday, amid a decline in Asian shares as rising virus cases around the world triggered concerns about the economic recovery.

India reported 2.95 lakh new infections and 2,023 deaths on Wednesday, the highest daily tally since the pandemic began.

The Japanese government is mulling a state of emergency for Tokyo and Osaka amid surging cases.

Daily infections topped 4,000 in Japan, with the government is set to declare the state of emergency in the capital and Osaka this week.

The U.S. and Canada extended a land-border closure for non-essential travelers due to COVID-19 concerns.

The move came following a surge in virus cases in Canada, particularly in the province of Ontario.

The greenback reversed from its early lows of 0.9146 against the franc and 1.2044 against the euro, rising to 0.9167 and 1.2025, respectively. The greenback is seen finding resistance around 0.94 against the franc and 1.18 against the euro.

The greenback spiked higher to a 1-week high of 0.7704 against the aussie, 2-day highs of 0.7162 against the kiwi and 1.3916 against the pound, after falling to 0.7736, 0.7187 and 1.3950, respectively in early deals. The greenback is poised to find resistance around 0.75 against the aussie, 0.70 against the kiwi and 1.34 against the pound.

The greenback rebounded from a 1-1/2-month low of 107.88 against the yen, with the pair trading at 108.09. Next key resistance for the greenback is seen around the 110.00 region.

The greenback, however, weakened to 1.2583 against the loonie, compared to yesterday's close of 1.2604. The greenback is likely to find support around the 1.225 region.

The yen approached a 5-day high of 117.82 against the franc, 2-day highs of 150.32 against the pound and 129.83 against the euro, reversing from its early lows of 118.06, 150.72 and 130.12, respectively. The next possible resistance for the yen is seen around 114.00 against the franc, 147.00 against the pound and 125.00 against the euro.

The Japanese yen strengthened to 1-week highs of 83.22 against the aussie and 77.36 against the kiwi, up from its prior lows of 83.59 and 77.62, respectively. The yen is likely to test resistance around 80.00 against the aussie and 74.00 against the kiwi, if it rallies again.

In contrast, the yen edged down to 85.85 against the loonie, after touching 85.57, which was its highest level since March 8. The yen may locate support around the 0.88 level.

Looking ahead, U.K. house price data is due in the European session.

Canada CPI for March will be published in the New York session.

At 10:00 am ET, the Bank of Canada announces decision on interest rates. Economists forecast the benchmark rate to hold at 0.25 percent.