U.S. dollar costs 114.70 yen, Euro - USD1.4492

The dollar was higher against the yen Tuesday in Asia but held in a narrow range amid a lack of fresh market-moving news.

Photo: U.S. dollar costs 114.70 yen, Euro - USD1.4492

The U.S. dollar was trading at 114.70 yen midafternoon, up from 114.36 yen late Monday in New York. The euro rose to US$1.4492 from US$1.4471.

Traders said the market looks to have priced in the latest from the subprime saga, with the departure of top U.S. bankers over the mess not affecting the dollar much.

Meanwhile, the euro looked attractive, but investors are likely to wait until Thursday, when European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet is to hold a press conference after the bank's rate-setting meeting.

"Since some players anticipate rate hikes by the bank in the near term, the euro risks falling on disappointment if Trichet turns out to be dovish," said Kazuhiro Kaneko, a senior dealer at Mizuho Trust and Banking.

According to a Dow Jones survey, market participants expect the bank to hold rates steady at 4 percent in the Thursday meeting.

Money traders also waited for U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's speech Tuesday at the microfinance summit in San Antonio, Texas, but most expect Bernanke won't discuss the outlook for the country's monetary policy.

Against other regional currencies, the dollar was mostly higher. It rose to 43.765 Philippine pesos from 43.600 the previous day and to 7.7645 Hong Kong dollars from 7.7635. It fell to 32.378 Taiwan dollars from 32.395.