Yen on the defensive before BOJ, dollar nurses losses

By Ian Chua SYDNEY (Reuters) - The yen stayed on the defensive early on Friday as the market waited to see if the Bank of Japan would ease policy, while the dollar languished at two-week lows in the face of disappointing U.S. economic data. New orders for long-lasting U.S. manufactured goods in December recorded their biggest drop in 16 months as lower oil prices and a strong dollar pressured factories. The report was the latest indication that economic growth braked sharply at the end of 2015,