Yen Falls On Fed Inflation Comments

The Japanese yen slipped against its major counterparts in the Asian session on Wednesday, as sentiment improved following further assurances from Fed officials that a spike in inflation is largely due to transitory factors.

Chicago Fed President Charles Evans said that the recent increase in inflation did not seem to be the precursor of a persistent movement to undesirably high levels of inflation.

Evans added that he had not found anything so far to persuade him to change support of accommodative stance for monetary policy or forward guidance about the path for policy.

"Right now, policy is in a very good place and we need to be patient," San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly told CNBC.

Fed Vice Chair Richard Clarida said that he is not expecting a scenario where an overheating economy leads to runaway inflation.

Traders look ahead to the second reading of the first quarter U.S. gross domestic product data due Thursday and Friday's closely-watched inflation data for more clues on the economic recovery and the outlook for monetary policy.

The yen weakened to 133.41 against the euro, 108.90 against the greenback, 121.71 against the franc and 154.19 against the pound, down from its early highs of 133.13, 108.72, 121.35 and 153.78, respectively. The next possible support for the yen is seen around 135.00 against the euro, 112.00 against the greenback, 123.5 against the franc and 156.00 against the pound.

The yen depreciated to a 1-week low of 84.80 against the aussie and more than a 3-year low of 79.60 against the kiwi, after rising to 84.25 and 78.52, respectively in early deals. Should the yen falls further, 88.00 and 82.00 may be seen as its next support levels against the aussie and the kiwi, respectively.

In contrast, the yen recovered to 90.11 against the loonie from an early low of 90.37. The currency is seen finding resistance around the 88.00 region.

Looking ahead, at 10:00 am ET, Federal Reserve Governor Randal Quarles will deliver a speech about insurance regulation at an online event hosted by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners International Insurance Forum.