News

    * Dollar edges toward 110 yen in best month since 2016
    * Euro languishes below $1.18 as pandemic fight sputters
    * Bitcoin buoyed as Visa latest to back cryptocurrencies
    * Graphic: World FX rates tmsnrt.rs/2RBWI5E

    By Kevin Buckland
    TOKYO, March 30 (Reuters) - The dollar climbed to a one-year
high against the yen on Tuesday amid a spike in Treasury
yields, as accelerating vaccinations and massive stimulus in the
U.S. stoked inflation concerns.
    The safe-haven greenback also found support as investors
worried about the potential fallout from the collapse of a hedge
fund, identified as Archegos Capital, although those jitters had
eased as the Asian trading day got under way.
    The dollar rose to a cusp of 110 yen in Asia, a level not
seen since March of last year. It's on track for the best month
since late 2016, with the end of Japan's fiscal year this month
driving up dollar demand as companies seek to square their
books.
    Benchmark 10-year Treasury yields rose as high
as 1.7450% in Asia, approaching the 14-month high of 1.7540%
touched earlier this month. The five-year note's yield
 pushed as high as 0.9170% for the first time since
March of last year.
    Higher yields make a currency more attractive as an
investment.
    That climb in the shorter-dated yield will keep the dollar's
upward momentum going, according to Chris Weston, the head of
research at Pepperstone Markets Ltd, a foreign exchange broker
based in Melbourne.
    "The USD has moved into a different realm as an investment
destination," he wrote in a client note.
    The euro languished near the 4-1/2-month low of
$1.1763 reached on Monday, on course to fall by the most this
month since mid-2019.
    Tougher coronavirus curbs in France and Germany have dimmed
the short-term outlook for the European economy, while a
widening spread between U.S. and German bond yields are adding
pressure on the single currency.
    The dollar index, also known by the code DXY, hovered
near a 4-1/2-month high of 92.964 reached on Monday.
    "A break of 93.0 is just a matter of time," Westpac
strategists wrote in a report.
    "There’s few signs the DXY’s rally has run its course,
opening the door to a test of the 2020 Q3 highs of 94.50 for a
stretch target."
    The monthly U.S. non-farm payrolls report will be closely
watched at the end of this week, with Federal Reserve
policymakers so far citing slack in the labour market for their
continued lower-for-longer stance on interest rates.
    "In a week when the market is feeling so optimistic about
the forthcoming payrolls release, it seems very likely that the
greenback will find strong support," Rabobank currency
strategist Jane Foley wrote in a report.
    However, "the market is in danger of pricing in too much
inflation risk," meaning "we see scope for the USD to soften in
the months ahead," the report said.
    President Joe Biden will outline on Wednesday how he would
pay for a $3 trillion to $4 trillion plan to tackle America’s
infrastructure needs.
    Biden said 90% of U.S. adults would be eligible for
vaccination by April 19, and 90% of Americans would have a
vaccination centre within five miles (8 km) of their homes by
then, as his team ramps up its drive to get vaccine shots in
people's arms amid a surge in COVID-19 cases.
    In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin pushed back above
$58,000 overnight after Visa Inc said it would allow the
use of cryptocurrencies to settle transactions on its payment
network, in the latest sign of growing acceptance of digital
currencies on both Wall Street and Main Street.
    The token last traded around $57,000, continuing its
recovery from a trough of $50,360 last week. It set a record
high at $61,781.83 earlier this month.
    
========================================================
    Currency bid prices at 420 GMT
 Description      RIC         Last           U.S. Close  Pct Change     YTD Pct     High Bid    Low Bid
                                              Previous                   Change                 
                                              Session                                           
 Euro/Dollar                  $1.1762        $1.1767     -0.04%         -3.73%      +1.1778     +1.1761
 Dollar/Yen                   109.9620       109.8300    +0.14%         +6.48%      +109.9770   +109.8200
 Euro/Yen                     129.35         129.20      +0.12%         +1.91%      +129.4600   +129.1800
 Dollar/Swiss                 0.9396         0.9394      +0.03%         +6.21%      +0.9397     +0.9389
 Sterling/Dollar              1.3772         1.3760      +0.10%         +0.82%      +1.3779     +1.3760
 Dollar/Canadian              1.2589         1.2590      +0.01%         -1.12%      +1.2598     +1.2583
 Aussie/Dollar                0.7651         0.7632      +0.29%         -0.50%      +0.7663     +0.7630
 NZ                           0.7024         0.7001      +0.34%         -2.18%      +0.7032     +0.6997
 Dollar/Dollar All spots
Tokyo spots
Europe spots 
Volatilities 
Tokyo Forex market info from BOJ 

    
 (Reporting by Kevin Buckland; Editing by Sam Holmes and Kim
Coghill)