Japanese Yen Firms Amid Wall Street Sell-Off

The Japanese yen strengthened against the dollar as investors sought safer assets following a significant sell-off on Wall Street. Concerns about the U.S. economy and tech valuations were triggered by soft U.S. manufacturing data. Traders are now focused on upcoming U.S. payroll data, which impacts Federal Reserve rate decisions.

The Japanese yen strengthened against the dollar on Wednesday as investors gravitated towards safer assets. This shift followed a sharp sell-off on Wall Street in the previous session, driven by concerns over the U.S. economy and tech sector valuations.

Soft U.S. manufacturing data fanned worries about a potential hard landing for the U.S. economy. This comes as traders are already skittish ahead of the crucial monthly payrolls numbers, set to be released on Friday.

On Tuesday, U.S. equity indexes experienced a notable decline, with AI chip giant Nvidia tumbling nearly 10%. The risk-off sentiment extended to Asian and European markets on Wednesday.

(With inputs from agencies.)