The comments by Trump, who had warned in an interview with Reuters on Thursday that a "major, major conflict" with North Korea was possible, appeared to mark a shift in tone towards the North Korean leader. It took the edge off weeks of rising tensions on the Korean peninsula and helped push the Korean won up 0.7 percent against the dollar - one of the biggest gainer in Asia on the day.
The won was also buoyed by data showing South Korean exports rose at a much faster-than-expected pace in April, surging for a sixth-straight month, aided by strong demand for high-tech memory chips. "Without any military escalation, markets appear biased to buy the Korean won on dips, banking on positive export growth and greater political clarity post-elections next week," Mizuho Bank said in a note.
Among other currencies, the Malaysian ringgit appreciated for a fifth-straight day to touch its highest in more than five months. The Chinese yuan was little changed after a private survey showed that China's factory sector lost momentum in April, with growth slowing to its weakest pace in seven months as domestic and export demand weakened and commodity prices dipped.
Meanwhile, the Japanese yen fell to a one-month low after the dollar was lifted by treasury yields which surged after US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin commented on the possibility of ultra long-term bond issuance. The Taiwanese dollar firmed as much as 0.8 percent to its strongest level against the dollar since September 2014, supported by a rally in global tech stocks in the wake of rising optimism over the prospects for the technology industry. The Taiwanese dollar has been the strongest performing currency in Asia this year.
Copyright Reuters, 2017