At the start of the week, currencies recorded a mixed performance. Indeed, the US dollar held steady, while the Australian and New Zealand dollars reached multi-month lows. The South African rand strengthened early in the session, the Indian rupee is expected to recover, and the yuan fell to a three-week low.

The US dollar remained broadly stable on Monday , on track for its strongest monthly gain since July, as investors worried about the repercussions of a prolonged war in the Middle East, which sent the yen falling past the crucial 160 threshold and fueled intervention fears. The dollar index, which measures the value of the US currency against six other currencies, stood at 100.14 early in the session.

The Australian and New Zealand dollars hit multi-month lows on Monday, as surging energy costs from the prolonged Middle East war darkened global growth prospects and prompted investors to seek refuge in the safety of the US dollar.

The Australian dollar fell 0.3% to $0.6851, marking its seventh consecutive session of declines and reaching its lowest level since January 23.

The New Zealand dollar dropped 0.3% to $0.5734, marking its fifth consecutive session of declines and reaching its lowest level since January 15. After losing 1.4% last week, key support lies around $0.5712.

The Indian rupee is expected to recover at Monday's open, amid the unwinding of arbitrage positions triggered by central bank restrictions on onshore position limits. The rupee fell more than 4% in March through Friday, putting it on track for its worst monthly performance in over seven years.

The currency fell nearly 1% on Friday to 94.8125, hitting an all-time low of 94.8400.

The Chinese yuan retreated against the US dollar on Monday and was headed for its first monthly decline since July, with the greenback benefiting from safe-haven flows as the war against Iran stretched into a second month.

The yuan weakened to 6.9211 against the US dollar, a level not seen since March 9, and traded at 6.9182 at 02:59 GMT.

The currency has now lost 0.9% against the dollar this month, ending a seven-month rally.

Its offshore counterpart traded at 6.924 yuan per dollar, down about 0.04% in Asian markets.

The yuan could remain under pressure in the short term, as the Middle East conflict continues to drive up oil prices and dollar demand, Bank of America analysts said in a note.

The South African rand strengthened early on Monday, supported by a broad rise in commodity prices, as investors continued to assess the Middle East conflict.

At 6:54 GMT, the rand traded at 17.0525 against the dollar, up about 0.4% from its previous close. Gold prices edged higher on Monday, benefiting from a weaker dollar, but gains were capped by surging energy prices, fueling inflation fears.