VENTURE CAPITAL POST

The dollar steadied in the lower half of an increasingly intransigent range on Monday, after sliding late last week following another round of disappointing U.S. economic data.

Most central banks have been easing policy since the start of the year and are set to do more, but it still isn't clear whether that new activism, which has pushed stock markets to record highs, will help the global economy much.

Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said on Sunday that financial markets "could be surprised" if the central bank hits its 2-percent inflation target in 2016 and interest rates in Japan start to rise as a result.

The yen is fairly valued around current levels, a key economic adviser to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Tuesday, a day after comments he made were taken to mean the yen was too weak.

Japan's core machinery orders fell for a second straight month in February in a sign that business investment remains soft, and analysts say the smaller-than-expected decline won't necessarily allow policymakers to relax given an uncertain economic outlook.

The dollar took a step back on Wednesday but retained a bulk of its overnight gains after currency bulls scooped up the greenback following the tumble induced by weak U.S. non-farm payrolls late last week.

A rift is emerging between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his hand-picked central bank boss on how to fix Japan's tattered finances, which could blunt the impact of the "Abenomics" stimulus policies they have worked together to prosecute.

For a world economy coming to terms with a soaring dollar and a plunge in oil prices, this week will be all about the U.S. Federal Reserve's policy meeting and its intentions on interest rates.

Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda defended his two-year timeframe for achieving his ambitious inflation target, warning that adopting a relaxed approach to the deadline would undermine efforts to break the country out of the shackles of deflation.

Three members of the Bank of Japan's policy board expressed doubts the central bank can meet its inflation target because of a slowdown in underlying prices and falling oil, pointing to chinks in the BOJ's strategy to spark sustainable growth.

The Bank of Japan maintained its massive asset buying stimulus spree on Wednesday and revised up its view on exports and output, even as data showing only a feeble recovery from recession tempers its optimism.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Monday he hopes the central bank continues with its bold monetary easing campaign to achieve its 2 percent inflation target.

Japan's economy likely rebounded from recession in the final quarter of last year, data on Monday is set to show, giving a much needed boost to premier Shinzo Abe's efforts to steer the country out of decades of stagnation.

Bank of Japan policymakers meet next week for that most delicate of monetary missions - raising inflationary expectations without scaring households into cutting back consumption.

The Bank of Japan has put monetary policy on hold and found backing for its wait-and-see stance from advisors to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who worry more easing could send the yen to damagingly low levels, according to officials in the administration and central bank.