The dollar slowed its descent after a week of declines and the safe-haven yen edged ahead on Monday, as coronavirus lockdowns tightened across the world and investors braced for a prolonged period of uncertainty. In bumpy trade the dollar ran ahead early before settling back against the pound, euro, kiwi and the Australian dollar. Sterling was last 0.1% softer at $1.2449, the Aussie flat at $0.6158 and the euro (EUR=) stable at $1.1132. The weekend brought more bad news on the virus front. The U.S. has emerged as the latest epicenter of the outbreak, with more than 137,000 cases and 2,400 deaths. President Donald Trump, who had talked about reopening the economy for Easter, on Sunday extended guidelines for social restrictions to April 30 and said the peak of the death rate could be two weeks away. The halt in the dollar's slide came with a broader risk-averse mood, which lifted the Japanese yen 0.4% to 107.47 per dollar. Over the past two weeks the dollar has posted its biggest weekly rise since the 2008 financial crisis and then its biggest weekly drop since 2009. Yet as signs of funding stress have eased, but not abated, the dollar remains at elevated levels.