Sharjah24 - Reuters: The yen was hurt by the revelation that Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Masayoshi Amamiya was being considered for the position of the next governor, while the dollar maintained steady on Monday after a solid U.S. employment data suggested the Federal Reserve may remain hawkish for longer.

The Nikkei newspaper reported, citing anonymous government and ruling party sources, that Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's administration was in the final stages of deciding on current governor Haruhiko Kuroda's successor along with two new deputy governors.

In a news conference on Monday, Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihiko Isozaki said there was no truth to the Nikkei report.

The yen weakened 0.42% to 131.75 per dollar, having touched three-week lows of 132.60 earlier in the session.

"Amamiya has helped Kuroda since 2013 on monetary policies, and is considered the most dovish among the contenders, which is thrashing hopes that BOJ policy normalization could progress under the new chief," Saxo Markets strategists said.

The BOJ's loose policy settings have drawn increasing criticism from many quarters, including opposition politicians and traders, for distorting market function.