The dollar held below a near one-month high on Wednesday as investors focused on two key risks- a default by Chinese property developer Evergrande and the expected pace of U.S. monetary policy tightening. The dollar index stood at 93.226 in early Asian trade, staying not far off Monday’s one-month high of 93.455. The common currency dropped to a seven-month low of 127.93 yen, as the safe-haven Japanese currency was supported by the cautious mood. The dollar traded at 109.165 yen, near the low end of its trading range since mid-August. The Bank of Japan is expected to keep its policy on hold later in the day. Evergrande, once China’s top-selling property developer, is inching closer to a key deadline on Thursday when the firm is due to pay $83.5 million in interest relating to its March 2022 bond. The bonds would be deemed in default if Evergrande fails to settle the interest within 30 days of the scheduled payment dates. Investors also look to how mainland Chinese markets will react when they will reopen on Wednesday after a four-day weekend. Another major focus for the day is the U.S. Federal Reserve, which is expected to drop more hints on its future policy path, including when to start tapering its bond buying and when to start raising interest rates. There are rising expectations the central bank will signal it plans to start reducing its massive bond purchases in November if incoming data holds up.