SINGAPORE, Oct 17 Reuters The U.S. dollar swayed in a tight range on Tuesday as traders took stock of developments in the Middle East and braced for a slew of speeches by central bank officials this week headlined by Fed Chair Powell to gauge the monetary policy outlook.

The yen was pinned close to the key 150 per dollar level, keeping investors on edge for any signs of intervention by the Japanese authorities.

The yen last fetched 149.60 per dollar, having slipped to 150.17 on Oct. 3, the weakest in a year, before getting some relief in a brief rally.

Japan39;s top financial diplomat Masato Kanda said the yen was still perceived as a safe haven asset like the dollar and the Swiss franc despite its recent weakness, and was benefiting from demand due to the conflict in the Middle East.

Israel39;s shekel on Monday breached the key level of four per U.S. dollar for the first time since 2015 on jitters over Israel39;s war with the Palestinian militant group Hamas. It was last at 4.0176 per dollar in choppy trading on Tuesday.

Geopolitics will continue to be a key driver for markets in the week ahead as investors continue to weigh the risks of an escalation with the approach of the U.S. authorities to prevent the conflict spreading to rest of the Middle East region, said Charu Chanana, market strategist at Saxo in Singapore.

The dollar index , which measures the U.S. currency against six rivals, inched 0.056 higher to 106.32, after dropping 0.36 on Monday.

Investor…