Asian session: The U.S. dollar pared some of its recent losses

The U.S. dollar pared some of its recent losses as investors worried about the likelihood of a U.S. interest rate increase in coming weeks.

A string of comments in recent weeks by Federal Reserve officials and minutes of the last Fed meeting have put a possible rate hike firmly on the table for June or July, reviving the dollar but cooling appetite for riskier assets, even if markets are not totally convinced a tightening will come so soon. Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harker said on Monday that a hike in June is appropriate unless data weakens, while St. Louis Fed President James Bullard said holding rates too low for too long could cause financial instability.

"The yen gained as risk aversion overcame the Fed officials' hawkish views. Upward pressure on the yen was stronger due to weaker stocks and falling commodities," said Junichi Ishikawa, FX analyst at IG Securities in Tokyo. "That said, the dollar index has stood tall overall amid a significant rise in the two-year U.S. Treasury yield. Trades preparing for a potential Fed rate hike in June are likely to continue." Fed Chair Janet Yellen will appear at a panel at Harvard University on Friday, a day on which investors will also see the second estimate of U.S. first-quarter growth. Markets also await comments from other Fed officials this week, as well as data on new home sales, durable goods orders and consumer sentiment.

EUR / USD: during the Asian session the pair fell to $ 1.1205

GBP / USD: during the Asian session, the pair was trading in the $ 1.4475-00

USD / JPY: during the Asian session, the pair was trading in range Y109.20-40

Based on Reuters materials