USDJPY Movement
For the 24 hours to 23:00 GMT on Friday, the USD weakened marginally against the JPY and closed at 79.32, as existing home sales in the US declined in September.
On the economic front, Japan’s leading index climbed to 93.2 in August, compared to 93.0 in July. Meanwhile, the coincident index was revised down to a reading of 93.5 in August, compared to 93.8 in July. Also, all industry activity rose 0.1% (MoM) in August, following a 0.6% drop in the previous month.
In the Asian session, at GMT0300, the pair is trading at 79.35, with the USD trading 0.04% higher from Friday’s close.
This morning, the Bank of Japan Governor, Masaaki Shirakawa stated that the central bank must be vigilant about the effect of currency moves on the economy, warning that global economic uncertainty remains high.
Data just released indicated that the merchandise trade deficit in Japan narrowed less-than-expected to ¥558.6 billion in September compared to a downwardly revised ¥755.9 billion deficit reported in the previous month.
The pair is expected to find support at 79.18, and a fall through could take it to the next support level of 79.02. The pair is expected to find its first resistance at 79.47, and a rise through could take it to the next resistance level of 79.60.
The currency pair is trading just above its 20 Hr and 50 Hr moving averages.
