- The Japanese Yen (JPY) rises after yesterday’s losses
- Safe haven demand rises ahead of Trump’s trade announcements
- The US Dollar (USD) is flat against its major peers
- US ISM manufacturing contracts to 49
The US dollar against the Japanese yen (USD/JPY) exchange rate is falling after gaining yesterday. The pair rose 0.09% in the previous session, settling on Monday at 149.95. At 22:00 UTC, USD/JPY trades -0.23% lower at 149.60 and is in a range of 148.98 to 149.99.
The safe-haven yen rose against the US dollar on Tuesday, following a week of U.S. economic data ahead of Trump’s tariff announcements due tomorrow.
Fears are rising over what the traitorous could mean for global growth. The Japanese yen is often regarded as a safe-haven asset and is considered a safer asset than the US dollar in the current environment.
Trump’s tariff announcement for Liberation Day will be made tomorrow. Details have been scarce regarding the scope, scale, and duration of these proposed trade tariffs, creating uncertainty across the currency and equity markets.
The US Dollar is falling against the yen but rising versus its major peers. The US Dollar Index, which measures the greenback against a basket of major currencies, is 0.01% lower at 104.22 at the time of writing, after rising 0.16% yesterday.
The U.S. dollar is under pressure after weaker US data, which raises concerns about the outlook for the US economy. The US ISM manufacturing PMI fell into contraction in March, falling to 49 from 50.3. The level 50 separates expansion from contraction. Meanwhile, the prices paid subcomponent was higher than expected, raising concerns of stagflation—an outlook of weak growth and sticky inflation.
Separately, job data yesterday showed that job openings declined by more than the forecast of 7.57 million. However, layoffs remained subdued, adding to evidence that the labor market is cooling only gradually.
The data comes ahead of Friday’s nonfarm payroll report, which could provide more clues into the health of the US labor market.