Japanese Yen Profits from Uprising in Libya

The Japanese yen strengthened yesterday, reaching the highest level in a week against the euro, as the turmoil in Libya increased demand for the safe currencies. Today the yen weakened somewhat.

Human Rights Watch said that the crackdown on the protesters already left more than 200 dead. Libya’s leader Muammar al-Gaddafi stated that the uprising “will lead to civil war”. The conflict caused concerns about supplies of crude oil as Libya is one of the major oil exporters. March delivery for crude oil jumped as much as 9.7 percent to $94.49 per barrel in New York, the highest level since October 2008.

The concerns about the US housing market also spurred the risk aversion sentiment as the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index declined in December and the report today is expected to show a drop of the existing home sales. The MSCI World Index of shares dropped 1.5 percent.

USD/JPY traded at 82.83 as of 1:11 GMT today after it dropped from 83.13 to 82.76 yesterday. EUR/JPY traded near 113.53 after it fell on the yesterday’s session from 113.72 to 112.96.

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