USD/JPY struggles near weekly lows, below 112.00 mark
| • News that N. Korea test-fired a tactical guided weapon boosts JPY’s safe-haven demand.
• A subdued USD price action further collaborated to the pair’s slide to fresh weekly lows.
• Traders now eye US monthly retail sales data for a fresh impetus ahead of Easter holidays.
The USD/JPY pair met with some fresh supply during the Asian session on Thursday and is currently placed at the lower end of its weekly trading range, just below the 112.00 handle.
The pair continued with its struggle to sustain at higher levels and once again failed near the 112.15 region (YTD tops), rather came under some renewed selling pressure in reaction to the news that North Korea has test-fired a new tactical guided weapon.
The latest geopolitical development largely offset optimism led by a report that the US and China may sign a long-negotiated trade deal in late May or early June and provided a strong boost to the Japanese Yen's perceived safe-haven status on Thursday.
This coupled with a subdued US Dollar price action, further weighed down by a sharp pullback in the US Treasury bond yields, further collaborated to the pair's slide to fresh weekly lows, albeit the selling pressure now seems to have abated near the 111.85 region.
Moving ahead, today's US economic docket - highlighting the release of monthly retail sales, will now be looked upon for some fresh impetus amid reviving safe-haven demand and relatively thin trading conditions ahead of the Easter holidays.
Technical levels to watch
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