USDJPY Movement
For the 24 hours to 23:00 GMT, the USD strengthened marginally against the JPY and closed at 97.89.
In the Asian session, at GMT0300, the pair is trading at 97.94, with the USD trading marginally higher from yesterday’s close.
Data released this morning indicated that, Japan’s seasonally adjusted retail sales dropped 1.4% (MoM) in March compared to a revised 1.7% rise recorded last month. Meanwhile, industrial production rose 0.2% in March, compared to a 0.6% rise posted in the previous month. Also, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate slipped to 4.1% in March, compared to a 4.3% rate reported in the previous month. Separately, overall household spending increased 5.2% (YoY) in March, higher than a rise of 0.8% recorded in the previous month. Meanwhile, the Markit/JMMA Japan manufacturing purchasing managers’ index rose to a level of 51.1 in April as compared to a level of 50.4 recorded in March.
The pair is expected to find support at 97.53, and a fall through could take it to the next support level of 97.12. The pair is expected to find its first resistance at 98.29, and a rise through could take it to the next resistance level of 98.63.
The currency pair is showing convergence with its 20 Hr moving average and is trading just below its 50 Hr moving average.
