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Tokyo - The dollar slipped against the yen and euro on Friday ahead of a US jobs report that will offer clues on what is in store for US monetary policy, while jittery investors sold emerging market currencies.
While Britain's decision to leave the European Union has raised questions about the outlook for the global economy, the release of June non-farm payrolls figures will be scrutinised for an idea about the Federal Reserve's plans for interest rates.
The US central bank held off raising borrowing costs after its meeting last month following a sharply lower May jobs report.
"The market's focus is on the US jobs report," Jeon Seung Ji, a currency analyst at Samsung Futures in Seoul, told Bloomberg News.
"Numbers are expected to show some improvement, but this isn't likely to prompt a rate hike by the Fed."
In Tokyo, the dollar dropped to ¥100.35 from ¥100.76 late on Thursday in New York, while the euro rose to $1.1078 from $1.1065.
The single currency weakened to ¥111.18 from ¥111.50 as investors move into safe havens, worried about the uncertainty caused by Britain's decision to leave the European Union.
With the turmoil caused by the Brexit vote fanning demand for the safe haven yen, talk is swirling about a possible Japanese intervention to protect its exporters.
On Friday, morning senior Japanese officials met to discuss volatility on financial markets and the surge in the yen.
"If (the US jobs data) is surprisingly weak like last month, risk-off sentiment will probably strengthen quite a lot," said Kuniyuki Hirai, manager of foreign-exchange trading at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ.
The pound climbed to $1.2957 from $1.2915, but struggled to climb back above the $1.30 level after touching a 31-year low of $1.2798 on Wednesday.
Among riskier emerging market units, the oil-reliant Malaysian ringgit slumped 0.8% against the dollar, and South Korea's won was 0.4% off.
The Indonesian rupiah, Thailand's baht and the Philippine peso also declined.
