The Japanese yen steadied on Tuesday and the Swiss franc was also softer as some of the most striking moves of recent days reversed somewhat, and a hint of calm returned to markets.

The dollar was last at 144.75 yen, up 0.3% on the day, the first day it has traded higher on the Japanese currency this month, but still down 10 yen in the past week.

The reassessment was also taking place across equity markets, and Japan's benchmark Nikkei index gained 10% on Tuesday after a 12% fall the day before, while shares in Europe were also trying to recover.

The dollar also regained ground on the euro and pound, with the common currency off 0.24% at $1.0926, having hit a seven-month high of $1.1009 during Monday's turmoil.

Sterling was down 0.3% at $1.274. The Swiss franc weakened on Tuesday and the dollar was up 0.45% at 0.85545 francs.

Source : Reuters