By Gertrude Chavez-Dreyfuss

NEW YORK (Reuters) – The safe-haven yen and dollar rose on Friday after President Donald Trump tested positive for COVID-19, rattling investors just a month before November’s U.S. presidential election.

By afternoon trading, markets had calmed down, with the dollar and yen still up but moved in narrow ranges.

Data showing U.S. nonfarm payrolls rising less than expected in September, but with a drop in the unemployment rate, had little impact on currencies, as markets focused on Trump’s health.

Trump, who had played down the threat of the coronavirus pandemic for months, said he and his wife Melania had tested positive for COVID-19 and were going into quarantine, upending the race for the White House.

The news sparked some selling on Wall Street, while U.S. Treasury prices were lower after an initial rally.

The yen made its sharpest gain in more than a month to reach a