The Australian and New Zealand dollars climbed as a stronger yuan and optimism about a recovery in Asian exports buoyed sentiment. The pound dropped after a Bank of England policy maker flagged the prospect of an interest-rate cut in January.

Aussie and kiwi gained for a second session as a rise in South Korea’s chip exports added to recent evidence that the region’s economies are gaining momentum. The offshore yuan strengthened past 6.9 per dollar for the first time since July while most other Group-of-10 currencies were range-bound with Japan shut for a holiday.

Risk sentiment was also supported as traders looked ahead to the signing of a partial U.S.-China trade deal this week.

AUD/USD rose 0.3% to 0.6919; NZD/USD advanced 0.3% to 0.6650. GBP/USD fell 0.2% to 1.303 after BOE’s Gertjan Vlieghe told theFinancial Times that he’ll vote for an easing this month if there are no signs of the economy improving after the general election.

USD/JPY climbed 0.2% to 109.61; the market is positioned for dollar buy-stops above the December 109.73 high, according to an Asia-based FX trader. Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed following a 0.1% drop Friday after U.S. wages and non-farm payrolls missed estimates.

Source : Bloomberg