Yen steady, dollar firms on Middle East war fears

The yen was steady on Tuesday amid lingering market ​nerves after suspected intervention by Tokyo last week sparked sharp gains in recent sessions, while the U.S. dollar firmed on safe-haven demand ‌as the Middle East war weighed on sentiment. The Australian dollar was little changed at $0.7168 ahead of a policy decision from the Reserve Bank of Australia later in the day, where the central bank is widely expected to raise rates for the third straight meeting to tame inflation. Investor focus will be on the RBA’s tone and comments to gauge the rate outlook. ​Inflation has been above the RBA’s 2%-3% target range since mid-2025, prompting the central bank to start raising rates from early February.