* Graphic: World FX rates in 2019 http://tmsnrt.rs/2egbfVh
By Saikat Chatterjee
LONDON, Oct 16 (Reuters) - The dollar headed towards a
four-week low against its rivals on Wednesday on concerns that
elevated trade tensions between Washington and Beijing will
continue to weigh on the global growth outlook.
Risk appetite was on the back foot with the Japanese
currency firming against the greenback JPY=EBS while
trade-oriented currencies such as the Australian dollar AUD=D3
and the Kiwi dollar NZD=D3 led losers.
U.S.-China ties came into focus again as the yuan fell after
Beijing criticised new U.S. legislation seen as supportive of
pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong. Escalating trade tariffs from China and the United States
over the past year has forced central banks to start cutting
interest rates as global growth expectations have weakened.
On Tuesday, the International Monetary Fund said it expected
the global economy to grow in 2019 at its slowest pace since the
2008-09 financial crisis at 3.0%. "The cost of taking this dispute to its next stage of
escalation has exponentially increased," Morgan Stanley
strategists said in a daily note adding that U.S. and China
might adopt a more nuanced approach on the trade conflict in the
coming days.
But on Wednesday, those tensions showed no signs of ebbing
with the greenback .DXY fragile at 98.16, its lowest level
since Sept. 20.
Reports of a "Phase 1" trade deal between the United States
and China last week initially cheered markets but the dearth of
details around the agreement has since curbed any enthusiasm.
The Chinese currency also weakened.
In the onshore market, the yuan CNY=CFXS fell around 0.22%
to 7.0973 per dollar. In the offshore market, the yuan CNH=D3
was off more than 0.2% to 7.1028 versus the dollar.
The yen JPY=EBS rose slightly to 108.66 per dollar,
pulling away from a two-month low.