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Trump's Truth Social message reassures traders

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Crypto markets unsteady after weekend volatility

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Gold at fresh record highs

(Refreshes markets, adds Chinese trade data, new quote)

By Gregor Stuart Hunter

SINGAPORE, Oct 13 (Reuters) - The U.S. dollar remained

under pressure on Monday as investors hoped Washington would

temper its latest escalation of the trade war with Beijing after

Friday's selloff, while political developments in France and

Japan undermined the euro and the yen.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback's

strength against a basket of six currencies, was last down 0.1%

at 98.908, following a short-lived rebound from declines after

U.S. President Donald Trump announced 100% tariffs on China.

The broadside revived bad memories of Trump's Liberation Day

rollout of sweeping tariffs in April and sparked a selloff in

stocks and cryptocurrencies on Friday.

"Certainly it's pretty nervous out there," said Tim

Kelleher, head of institutional FX Sales at Commonwealth Bank in

Auckland.

"If you look at the U.S. and China stuff, it looks like Trump

has done a bit of a TACO again and softened his tone," he added,

referring to a trading adage that "Trump always chickens out."

After announcing the 100% tariffs on Friday, Trump said on Truth

Social on Sunday: "Don't worry about China, it will all be fine!

Highly respected President Xi just had a bad moment," he posted

on the Truth Social network. "He doesn't want Depression for his

country, and neither do I. The U.S.A. wants to help China, not

hurt it!!!"

Market liquidity may be affected by holidays as parts of the

U.S. observe Columbus Day/Indigenous Peoples' Day later on

Monday, though stock exchanges remain open. Japan was closed on

Monday to mark Health and Sports Day.

The euro stood at $1.1622, unchanged in Asian

trading, after the French presidency announced Prime Minister

Sebastien Lecornu's new cabinet lineup on Sunday, reappointing

Roland Lescure, a close ally of Emmanuel Macron, as finance

minister.

Against the yen, the dollar fetched 151.89 yen,

strengthening 0.5% as markets assessed the path ahead for new

Liberal Democratic Party leader Sanae Takaichi after Komeito

quit the ruling coalition on Friday, dealing a blow to her hopes

of becoming the first female prime minister of the world's

fourth-largest economy.

Cryptocurrency markets fluctuated between gains and losses after

a sharp selloff on Friday, with bitcoin last trading down 0.2%

at $114,849.14. Gold hit a fresh record of $4,068 an

ounce and was last up 1.2%.

The offshore yuan traded at 7.1357 yuan per dollar,

tacking on 0.2% in Asian trade after China's export growth

picked up pace in September.

"What China does in response to Trump's latest tariff

announcement will also affect how markets will respond in the

coming days," said Vasu Menon, managing director for investment

strategy at OCBC in Singapore.

"Both the U.S. and China know that they cannot afford to

ratchet up tensions too much, especially after having

accomplished so much in trade talks in recent months," he added.

"Ultimately, confrontation between the two superpowers could

give way to reason, and the two leaders could prioritise their

economies over their egos."

The Australian dollar fetched $0.6525, rising 0.8% in

early trade, while the kiwi traded at $0.5735, up 0.3%.

Sterling changed hands at $1.3347, up 0.1% so far on the

day.