Summary Poor Chinese trade data pushed investors into the relative safety of the yen.
NEW YORK (AFP) - Poor Chinese trade data on Tuesday sent global markets into the red and pushed investors into the relative safety of the yen, a haven in times of market uncertainty.
The dollar and the euro traded little changed ahead of the European Central Bank policy meeting on Thursday, expected to deliver additional stimulus to the eurozone, whether by deeper negative interest rates or bigger bond purchases, or both.
News of a 25 percent drop in Chinese exports in February as well as a 14 percent fall in imports, coupled with Japanese data confirming negative growth for the fourth quarter, "sapped investor appetite for risk," said Joe Manimbo, senior market analyst at Western Union Business Solutions.
The weak China trade data added to speculation the Federal Reserve would hold off in tightening credit given global growth concerns, after raising its key interest rate in December for the first time in nine years, analysts said.
The dollar fell 0.7 percent to 112.64 yen around 2200 GMT, while the euro was also down 0.7 percent at 124.02 yen.
The greenback firmed to $1.1010 per euro from $1.1013 Monday.
Nick Bennenbroek, head of currency strategy at Wells Fargo Securities, said no large directional moves in the foreign exchange markets were expected ahead of the ECB s announcement Thursday.
"We believe the risks are tilted towards the ECB s announcement being a negative event for the euro," he said.
"From a broader perspective we maintain an overall slight bias towards US dollar strength, with the Federal Reserve still on course to resume raising interest rates some time later this year."
