The dollar was firm on Thursday, hovering near a one-week high as Treasury yields rose and investor appetite for riskier currencies dimmed, while the yen breached 150 per dollar to keep traders jittery about the prospect of intervention.

The Japanese yen touched a fresh one-year low of 150.32 per dollar overnight and was last at 150.26.

Japanese finance minister Shunichi Suzuki warned investors against selling the yen again on Thursday, saying authorities were closely watching moves. "I'm watching market moves with a sense of urgency, as before," he told reporters at his ministry.

The closely watched 150 threshold is perceived by investors as a danger zone that may trigger intervention from Japanese authorities. Suzuki made no direct comment about the potential for intervention.

The Australian dollar slid to an 11-month low of $0.6276 and was last down 0.35% at $0.6287. A surprisingly high reading for inflation on Wednesday stoked expectations of a further hike in interest rates.

The euro was little changed at $1.0562 ahead of a policy decision from the European Central Bank later in the day.

Sterling was last at $1.2097, down 0.09% on the day and is on course for a weekly decline of 0.5%.

Against a basket of currencies, the dollar was at 106.58, just shy of the one-week high of 106.61 it touched on Wednesday.

Source : Reuters