The Rupee opened on Thursday with an upside bias, after Asian currencies were largely rangebound despite a rise in U.S. Treasury yields following robust U.S. jobs data. Asian currencies were mixed and largely range-bound on Thursday, reflecting a muted reaction to January's upside surprise in U.S. nonfarm payrolls. The dollar index initially climbed alongside higher U.S. Treasury yields, as the strong jobs data tempered expectations of U.S. Federal Reserve rate cuts, before retreating below the 97 threshold. U.S. equities were mostly flat on Wednesday, while 10-year Treasury yields rose about 3 basis points. Economists cautioned that the headline strength may overstate the underlying health of the labour market. Although data from the Labour Department showed a robust print, analysts noted that such releases are often subject to sizable revisions and should be interpreted with care. The bank highlighted that 2025 job growth was revised down to 181,000 from 584,000, averaging roughly 15,000 per month, underscoring the softness in the labour market. For the rupee, which has been establishing a 90-91 range following its initial rally on the back of the U.S.-India trade deal, the latest U.S. jobs data "changes nothing", a currency trader at a bank said. The rupee's reaction to external cues has anyway been limited in recent sessions, and with the payrolls report failing to significantly move other asset classes, the focus shifts back to local dollar flows and positioning, the trader added. A resurgent yen, runaway Aussie and steadily rising yuan had the dollar under pressure on Thursday and drifting toward a weekly drop, as investor focus turned to the next batch of U.S. labour and inflation data. A stronger-than-expected U.S. jobs report overnight briefly lifted the greenback. But traders are taking recent signs of U.S. economic resilience as cues for a broader brightening in global growth and are laying bets on Japan as a likely winner. The yen is up more than 2.6% since Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's Liberal Democratic Party swept to a landslide victory at Sunday's election and a mood shift seems to be afoot as markets set aside fears about spending to focus on growth. Against the dollar, the yen traded as strong as 152.55 on Wednesday, before steadying slightly below that at 153.05 per dollar on Thursday. The rebound is nascent - since the yen has been declining for years - but it has been big enough to turn heads in the market. Yen gains could easily accelerate, analysts said, if it broke past resistance around 152 per dollar, or even the 200-day moving average at 150.5. It has also made headway against crosses, rising 2% on the euro in two sessions and breaking to the strong side of a 50-day moving average. The euro was firm at $1.1875, sterling held at $1.3628 and the kiwi at $0.6052. The other major mover on the dollar in recent weeks has been China's yuan , which has been a steady gainer on the back of booming exports and hints from authorities that China may tolerate a stronger currency. Corporate demand ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday helped it to a 33-month top of 6.9057 per dollar on Wednesday and in offshore trade on Thursday it was a fraction firmer still at 6.9025. This week the U.S. dollar index is down 0.8% to 96.852. In terms of potential catalysts, U.S. jobless claims figures are due later on Thursday and January inflation data is due on Friday. Oil prices edged up on Thursday morning as investors worried about escalating tensions between the U.S. and Iran. Brent crude oil futures were up 34 cents, or 0.49%, at $69.74 a barrel at 0126 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude rose 37 cents, or 0.57%, to $65.00.......