Investing.com - The yen hit the lowest level against the U.S.
dollar since July 2010 on Friday, as investors continued to shun
the Japanese currency amid ongoing expectations for more aggressive
easing measures by the Bank of Japan.
USD/JPY hit 88.40 on Friday, the pair's highest since July 15 2010;
the pair subsequently consolidated at 88.12 by close of trade, up
2.64% for the week.
The pair is likely to find support at 87.22, Friday's low and
resistance at 89.40, the high of June 29 2010.
The yen remained under heavy selling pressure amid expectations
that Japan's new government will pressure the BoJ to ease policy
more aggressively in order to spur growth and combat deflation.
The dollar pared some gains against the yen after government data
on U.S. nonfarm payrolls indicated that the recovery in the labor
market may be slowing.
The U.S. Department of Labor said the economy added 155,000 jobs in
December, slightly higher than forecasts for an increase of
150,000, but easing from an upwardly revised increase of 161,000 in
November. The unemployment rate held steady at 7.8%.
The data came one day after the minutes of the Federal Reserve's
December policy meeting showed that some policymakers considered an
earlier-than-expected end to the bank's quantitative easing
program.
The Fed's December minutes said also interest rates would remain
close to zero "at least as long" as the jobless rate remains above
6.5%.
In the week ahead, investors are likely to remain focused on U.S.
political wrangling over fiscal policy, with negotiations raising
the U.S. debt ceiling still to come.
Ahead of the coming week, Investing.com has compiled a list of
significant events likely to affect the markets.
Monday, January 7
Japan is to publish official data on monetary base, which is
closely linked to interest rates.
Tuesday, January 8
The U.S. is to release private sector data on economic optimism, as
well as official data on consumer credit, which is closely linked
to consumer spending.
Wednesday, January 9
The U.S. is to publish official data on crude oil inventories,
while the U.S. Treasury is to hold an auction of 10-year government
bonds.
Thursday, January 10
The U.S. is to publish the weekly government report on initial
jobless claims.
Friday, January 11
Japan is to release official data on the current account, which is
directly linked to currency demand.
The U.S. is to round up the week with the government's report on
the trade balance, the difference in value between imports and
exports.
Investing.com -
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