- The USD/JPY pair recovers in the last hours of the day.
- The BOJ maintained its negative rate policy, as the markets expected.
- The US PMI indices returned mixed results, limiting any decisive move for the Dollar.
The pair USD/JPY closed the week south of the 148.50 level, after hitting an intraday high of 148.40, as the US Dollar covered its offers following a mixed Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) reading.
The Bank of Japan (BOJ) kept the lower band of its main policy rate at -0.1% early on Friday, somewhat shaking the bullish momentum of the Yen (JPY).
US S&P Global Manufacturing PMI improves to 48.9, Services PMI declines to 50.2 in September
Yen bulls found little love at the BOJ on Friday, as the Japanese central bank reaffirmed its easy monetary policy stance until it sees Japanese inflation remain at 2% “stably.” At the moment, Inflation in the Japanese economy is high, but price growth is expected to slow significantly in the coming months, and the BoJ remains far from an aggressive policy change.
The US PMI figures were somewhere in between, with a slight improvement in manufacturing and a decline in services.
The US S&P Global Manufacturing PMI rose more than expected, with a result of 48.9 compared to the expected 48, but the services component lost ground, with a result of 50.2 compared to the expected 50.6. The mixed result helped the Dollar against the Yen, but kept gains within the previous day’s highs.
USD/JPY Technical Outlook
USD/JPY retreated on Thursday and fell to the 200 hourly SMA, before rebounding during early trading on Friday.
The pair has gained ground throughout the week, and is set to finish higher, currently seeking a support point just below the week’s high of 148.46.
On the daily candlesticks, USD/JPY is decidedly bullish, up almost 8% from the July low near 137.20. Bullish price momentum finds technical support at the 34-day EMA, and the US Dollar has gained over 13% against the Japanese Yen so far this year.
USD/JPY technical levels
Source: Fx Street
I am Joshua Winder, a senior-level journalist and editor at World Stock Market. I specialize in covering news related to the stock market and economic trends. With more than 8 years of experience in this field, I have become an expert in financial reporting.
