SINGAPORE, Dec 24: The dollar held steady against the yen in Singapore late on Monday in quiet pre-Christmas trading, dealers said.

The dollar traded 129.4885 yen compared with 129.59 yen in New York and 129.37-40 yen in Tokyo late Friday.

Trading in the dollar-yen was extremely thin because of a public holiday in Japan, dealers said.

There’s not a lot going on at the moment, said Steve Brice, a treasury economist at Standard Chartered bank.

On the immediate outlook for the dollar-yen, Brice said the dollar was likely to hold on to its gains given the woeful state of the Japanese economy.

A mild bout of profit-taking could take place but the dollar is still expected to stay above the 129.00-yen level, said Brice.

The market is very long on dollars so maybe we could see a lower dollar-yen in the near future, he said.

Generally, we can we can see the dollar well supported but there may be a slight sell-off, said Brice.

Dutch bank ABN Amro however predicted a choppy period for the yen as the government struggles to prescribe the right medicine for the world’s second biggest economy.

The bank said yen volatility may increase further in the next few months and it is possible that the yen could break the crucial 130 ceiling.

The euro changed hands at $0.8887, against $0.8862 in New York and $0.8984-87 in Tokyo late Friday.

Trading was virtually at a standstill late in Singapore with financial markets closing early for Christmas Eve, dealers said.

Southeast Asia’s biggest lender DBS Bank in its latest report said the European unit is expected to hold its ground ahead of the changeover to euro banknotes and coins across the 12-nation euro zone on January 1.

We still believe it is in ECB’s (European Central Bank) interest to undertake measures it deems fit to maintain euro at a respectable level in order for residents to embrace euro notes and coins, the Singapore-based bank said.

Against the yen, the euro traded at 115.00 versus 116.26 in Tokyo late Friday.

In late Singapore trade, the dollar rose to 34.978 Taiwan dollars from 34.9445 Taiwan dollars but lost ground against the other Asian currencies.

It fell to 51.160 Philippine pesos from 51.195 on Friday, 43.93 Thai baht from 43.95, 10,175 Indonesian rupiah from 10,182.50, 1.8381 Singapore dollars from 1.8389, and 1,308.25 South Korean won from 1,309.150.—AFP