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Yen rises against major peers as traders await ECB meeting

Tokyo - The Japanese yen climbed against major peers on Tuesday as a slump in China's exports offered dealers more evidence of a slowdown in the world economy.

The dollar briefly touched ¥112.75, its weakest level in a week against Japan's currency - a perceived safe haven in times of turmoil - before the release of Chinese data showing in-bound and out-bound trade plunged more than analysts expected.

Exports from the world's second-largest economy slumped more than 25% year-on-year in February to $126.1bn, while imports were down by nearly 14% to $93.6bn.

In Tokyo, the greenback slipped to ¥113.03 in mid-afternoon trade on Tuesday from ¥113.41 late Monday in New York.
The euro eased to ¥124.56 from ¥124.90 in US trade, while rising to $1.1018 from $1.1013.

Traders are keenly anticipating Thursday's policy meeting of the European Central Bank - the first major central bank to meet this month.

The ECB meeting is expected to result in new stimulus measures for the 19-nation eurozone that could include another interest rate cut or new spending on bond-buying.

Emerging currencies broadly retreated against the dollar, with investors cautious about prospects for the world economy.

"Global challenges remain in place for emerging markets," Vishnu Varathan, a Singapore-based economist at Mizuho Bank, told Bloomberg News.

The Indonesian rupiah fell 0.34% against the US unit, while Singapore's dollar eased 0.38% and the South Korean won lost 0.39%.

The oil-linked Malaysian ringgit, Taiwan's dollar, the Thai baht and Philippine peso also lost ground against the US dollar.

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