Dollar steadies

TOKYO: The dollar held steady in Tuesday´s holiday-thinned trade, shrugging off upbeat Japanese economic data as market participants pondered about next year´s potential catalysts.

Markets in Australia and Hong Kong remained closed after Monday´s Christmas holiday, and many financial centres in Europe will also be shut on Tuesday.

The euro inched down 0.1 percent to $1.1869. The single currency gave up some ground last week after Catalan separatists won a regional election, deepening Spain´s political crisis in a sharp rebuke to Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy and European Union leaders who backed him.

Against the yen, the dollar was almost flat on the day at 113.30."Yesterday and today, major markets are closed, so it´s difficult to see clear direction at the moment, and we need to think about what will happen in the beginning of next year," said Masafumi Yamamoto, chief currency strategist for Mizuho Securities in Tokyo. "I still believe that the passage of the U.S. tax bill and the avoidance of the government shutdown are positive for the dollar," he said.

"In a relative sense, the dollar has an advantage." Last week, the U.S. Congress approved a tax code overhaul that was expected to give at least a short-term lift to already solid economic growth.