"In light of what the Fed has announced, it's a hawkish pause," said Bank of Singapore currency strategist Sim Moh Siong.
"The message here is that the Fed is tightening, and this is why I think the dollar itself could stay supported in the near term."
The yen plunged 0.9% to 141.365 per dollar, and earlier touched 141.430, a level not seen since Nov. 23.
The kiwi dollar sank 0.52% to $0.6177 after data showed New Zealand's economy slipped into a technical recession in the first quarter, putting further rate hikes in doubt.
"Following the rate cut from earlier this week, there's a lot of expectation for more wide ranging stimulus to shore up the economy," said Bank of Singapore's Siong.
Persons:
it's, Sim Moh, Rocky Swift, Edmund Klamann
Organizations:
U.S ., Federal Reserve, Bank of Japan, Fed, European Central Bank, Bank of, Singapore, People's Bank of China, Singapore's, Thomson
Locations:
TOKYO, China's, Bank of Japan