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Trio of central banks to announce rate decisions

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US non-farm payrolls and inflation data due

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Yen rises while pound loses ground

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US dollar index edges lower, bitcoin continues losing

streak

(Updates prices throughout, adds fresh analyst quote)

By Chibuike Oguh and Amanda Cooper

NEW YORK/LONDON, Dec 15 (Reuters) - The U.S. dollar

edged lower against rivals including the yen and Swiss franc on

Monday in a week packed with central bank decisions and U.S.

data that could shed light on the Federal Reserve's near-term

policy outlook.

The dollar was last down 0.31% against the yen,

trading at 155.345 to the dollar.

The Bank of Japan is widely expected to raise interest rates

on Friday, giving the yen an advantage over a dollar that could

lose support if expected U.S. rate cuts emerge early next year.

"Our economists shifted to expecting a December hike from

the BoJ in their base case," Goldman Sachs analysts led by

Alexandra Kanter wrote in an investor note.

"The guidance will be key for near-term direction, and a

recent report suggests that there may be less emphasis placed on

the bank's estimate of the neutral rate."

The BoJ is likely to maintain a pledge to keep raising interest

rates but emphasise that the pace of increases will depend on

how the economy reacts to each increase, sources told Reuters.

The Bank of England and European Central Bank are among

central banks making monetary policy decisions this week.

Markets have almost fully priced in a Bank of England cut as

inflation finally shows signs of easing while the ECB is

expected to leave rates unchanged.

Traders have begun speculating that a rate increase could be on

the cards for the ECB in 2026.

Sterling was down 0.12% at $1.33645, erasing earlier

gains, while the euro edged higher by 0.06% at $1.174775

in choppy trading, on track for a fourth straight session of

gains.

"In terms of the BoE, I think it's going to be very

interesting. I think it's going to be a finely balanced decision

to cut," said Joseph Capurso, currency strategist at

Commonwealth Bank of Australia.

"The risk is that the inflation data that comes out this

week may take out some of the pricing for follow-up rate cuts."

UK wage growth data is due on Tuesday and consumer inflation

on Wednesday.

US DATA IN SPOTLIGHT

A catalogue of U.S. data delayed by the government shutdown is

set to be released, giving investors a long-awaited view of the

world's largest economy. The November jobs report is due on

Tuesday and inflation figures on Thursday.

A divided Fed cut rates last week, but Chair Jerome Powell

signalled that borrowing costs were unlikely to drop further in

the near term.

Current above-target inflation does not reflect underlying

supply and demand dynamics that are generating price increases

much closer to the central bank's 2% target, Federal Reserve

Governor Stephen Miran said on Monday, asserting that "prices

are now once again stable."

"The question really is, is the prevailing theme going to be

shifted dramatically from the delayed data we get this week,"

said Eugene Epstein, head of trading & structured products for

Moneycorp Americas.

"At the moment, the U.S. and the bulk of its G10 peers are

like two ships in the night with respect to 2026 central bank

rate policy. In the U.S., it's a story of how long the central

bank is going to wait until another cut while almost everywhere

else in developed markets, it's a story of how is the central

going to wait until they start hiking," Epstein said.

The dollar rose 0.16% to 0.79725 against the Swiss franc

. The dollar index, which measures the U.S.

currency against a basket of rivals including the yen and the

euro, was a shade lower by 0.09% at 98.318.

Sweden's Riksbank and Norway's Norges Bank are expected to

leave interest rates unchanged after their policy meetings this

week.

The Swedish crown strengthened by 0.48% to 9.3009 to

the dollar. Against the Norwegian crown, the dollar was up 0.34%

at 10.1582.

In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin continued its losing

streak and was on track for a fourth straight session of losses.

It was last down 2.56% to $86,205.11. Ether declined

4.72% to $2,936.89.