Asian currencies were nursing steep losses from the prior session

Most Asian currencies kept to a tight range on Tuesday as traders grappled with renewed China-U.S. trade tensions.

Asian currencies were nursing steep losses from the prior session, while the dollar stood strong after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened 100% tariffs against China, drawing a sharp rebuke from Beijing.

While Chinese and U.S. officials attempted to soothe some tensions, markets remained largely on edge over more trade hostilities between the world’s largest economies.

The yuan weakened on this trend, with the USD/CNY pair rising 0.1%. China’s Ministry of Commerce warned that it will “fight to the end” in any trade war with the United States.

Trade data released on Monday showed China’s massive exports were so far facing limited headwinds from high U.S. tariffs, which stood at about 50%. China was also seen diverting U.S.-bound exports to other Asian and European countries.

In Japan, the yen’s USD/JPY pair dropped slightly, with the yen remaining weak on expectations of more fiscal spending under upcoming Prime Minister Sane Takaichi.

But Takaichi – who was recently elected as the leader of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party – faced a snag in her potential prime ministership after a major coalition partner withdrew their support.

The won’s USD/KRW pair moved little, while the Australian dollar’s AUD/USD pair dropped 0.3%.

The Indian rupee’s USD/INR pair remained pinned above 88 rupees, with softer-than-expected consumer inflation data for September drumming up bets on more rate cuts by the Reserve Bank of India.

The Singapore dollar’s USD/SGD pair moved little on Tuesday after gross domestic product data showed the Singapore’s economy grew more than expected in the third quarter.