- The Japanese Yen (JPY) is rising after 6-days of losses
- BoJ likely to leave rates unchanged this week
- The US Dollar (USD) rises against its major peers
- US retail sales rose 0.6% MoM
The US Dollar Japanese Yen (USD/JPY) exchange rate is falling, ending a six-day winning run. The pair rose 0.33% in the previous session, settling on Monday at 154.15. At 23:30 UTC, USD/JPY trades –0.4% lower at 153.54 and is in a range of 153.15 to 154.35.
The yen steadied on Tuesday after six straight days of losses ahead of Thursday’s Bank of Japan rate decision. The central bank is likely to keep interest rates on hold after having previously signaled a 25 basis point hike. However, recent comments from BoJ officials suggest that policymakers could wait until January to see the implications of Trump’s policy before taking a decision.
Looking ahead, Japanese trade data, including imports and exports, will be released shortly and could provide further clues about the economy’s health.
The US Dollar is falling against the yen but rising against its major peers. The US Dollar Index, which measures the greenback against a basket of major currencies, is rising to 106.94 at the time of writing, up 0.08%, after falling 0.14% yesterday.
The U.S. dollar is rising against its major peers after stronger-than-expected US retail sales and ahead of tomorrow’s Federal Reserve interest rate decision.
US retail sales grew at a faster pace than economists expected, highlighting the strength of the US economy. Sales rose 0.7% month over month, ahead of the forecast 0.6% and up from the upwardly revised 0.5% in October. The data underscores the resilience of the US consumer.
Tomorrow, attention will be on the Federal Reserve interest rate decision, as the central bank is expected to reduce rates by 25 basis points. However, Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell could also point to opposing rate cuts in January and a slower pace of cuts going forward.
