The Japanese yen dipped on Monday after strong gains last week on easing fiscal worries while the U.S. dollar was steady as soft inflation data bolstered the case for interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve later this year. Liquidity is likely to be thin with markets in the U.S., China, Taiwan and South Korea closed for holidays. The yen eased 0.3% to 153.15 per U.S. dollar on Monday after climbing nearly 3% last week - its biggest weekly jump in about 15 months - after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's Liberal Democratic Party won a landslide election victory.