The pound strengthened against the dollar, held broadly steady against the euro and fell sharply against the yen on Monday after British finance minister John Healey's first major economic speech provided little clear direction for the currency. Sterling rose 0.14% against the dollar to $1.3573 and stood at 85.86 pence per euro, while it dropped 0.8% against the yen to 209.41, its lowest level since February. Healey outlined plans to give city regions greater powers to attract private investment as part of Prime Minister Andy Burnham's effort to devolve authority from central government. He also emphasized fiscal discipline and efforts to contain rising costs for businesses and the public. Much of his focus on growth, deregulation and the cost of living continued the policy approach of his predecessor Rachel Reeves. Barclays analysts said higher global yields and an initial shift in investor attention toward the October Budget had contributed to sterling's earlier weakness. Traders want to see how Healey advances Burnham's ambitions on house-building, social care and defence while maintaining fiscal discipline. The yen strengthened broadly as possible capital repatriation, the unwinding of carry trades (borrowing cheaply to invest elsewhere), U.S. political pressure and expectations of faster Bank of Japan rate increases supported the currency. The yen reached 19-year lows against the pound in August and 40-year lows against the dollar.