Limited trade across FX as geopolitical risks linger

The currencies markets saw quiet trades Monday, with the absence of Japan`s financial markets and continued geopolitical tension, prompting traders to flee higher-yielding assets.

On Thursday, a Malaysia Airlines jet crashed near the Russia-Ukraine border, killing 298 people on board. The deadly crash came amid escalating violence between Ukrainian and separatist forces, and raised questions over Russia`s role in the conflict.

The dollar was little changed against the Russian Ruble, with the USD/RUB falling 0.02% to 35.11 as of 07:26 a.m. ET.

The escalating conflict between Israel and Hamas has also been dominating the headlines, while  diplomatic efforts to end the two-week intensified after battles killed dozens of Palestinians and more than 10 Israeli soldiers in the conflict`s deadliest day.

The armed wing of the Palestinian Hamas group claimed on Sunday night that it had kidnapped an Israeli soldier, prompting celebrations on the streets of Gaza City.

A spokeswoman for the Israeli military said they were aware of the claim and were investigating.

Separately, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand is broadly expected to raise the benchmark interest rate for a fourth consecutive month this week, but is expected to signal it will pause its tightening as it balances sliding commodity prices, rising inflation and a high flying currency.

The New Zealand dollar rose against its US counterpart for the second straight day, with the NZD/USD rising as much as 0.8718 before trading around 0.8690 as of 13:55 GMT+3.

On the other hand, the dollar rose against a six-currency basket as the lingering tension spurred by geopolitical risks continue to prompt investors to buy low-yielding assets amid lack of risk sentiment.

The USDIX traded around 80.57 after setting a session high of 80.65 and low of 80.11 compared to the day`s open at 80.21.