The dollar retreated to levels around ¥110.50 in Tokyo trading Tuesday, weighed down by heightened geopolitical risks over Syria and North Korea.
At 5 p.m., the dollar stood at ¥110.54-55, down from ¥111.32-33 at the same time Monday. The euro was at $1.0590-0590, slightly up from $1.0585-0587, and at ¥117.07-07, down from ¥117.86-86.
Geopolitical concerns have dampened investor sentiment since the U.S. missile attack on Syria last week, traders said.
"In particular, market participants are worried about developments related to North Korea," an official at a major Japanese bank said.
After falling to levels around ¥110.60 early in the morning, the U.S. currency briefly rallied above ¥110.80. But it slipped below ¥110.50 at one point in the afternoon, on a fall in long-term U.S. Treasury yields.
Besides the geopolitical risks, a dearth of major trading incentives, such as U.S. authorities' "hawkish" comments on interest rates, pressured the greenback, an official from a major Japanese bank said.
After Bank of Japan Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda mentioned ways to exit the quantitative easing policy, some players moved to sell dollars for yen, a currency broker said.