SINGAPORE, Dec 11 Reuters The dollar started Monday on the front foot, with a reading on U.S. inflation and the Federal Reserve39;s last policy meeting for the year likely to set the tone for the week, while rising deflationary pressure in China weighed on the yuan.

The greenback pushed back above 145 yen and last bought 145.62 yen, reversing some of its steep fall against the Japanese currency late last week, as bets grew that the Bank of Japan39;s ultralow interest rates policy may be nearing an end.

Sterling dipped 0.04 to 1.25425 and was huddled near Friday39;s twoweek low of 1.2504.

Data on Friday showed U.S. job growth accelerated in November while the unemployment rate fell to 3.7, underscoring the resilience of the labour market in the world39;s largest economy and challenging expectations of imminent rate cuts from the Fed beginning early next year.

They were a good set of numbers, said Joseph Capurso, head of international and sustainable economics at Commonwealth Bank of Australia CBA.

Wages were still running probably too hot for the Fed to be comfortable and the unemployment rate fell that was a really big surprise.

The figures caused traders to push back expectations of how soon the Fed could begin cutting rates, with many now leaning toward May instead of March.

The euro rose 0.07 to 1.0768 but stood not too far from Friday39;s more than threeweek low of 1.07235, while the dollar index edged 0.07 higher to 104.03.

The index gained more than 0.7…