EUR/JPY aims to break above 163.50 despite ECB dovish bets soar
- EUR/JPY drops but remains focused on breaking above the key resistance of 163.50.
- Traders doubt the BoJ hiking rates again this year.
- The ECB is expected to cut its borrowing rates further by 50 bps this year.
The EUR/JPY pair falls to near 162.80 in Thursday’s European session after its second failed attempt to break above the September high of 163.50. The asset strives to extend its upside amid broader weakness in the Japanese Yen (JPY) due to fading speculation of more hikes from the Bank of Japan (BoJ) this year.
Traders appear to be cautious about the BoJ tightening its policy further this year as weak consumer spending has raised doubts over the maintenance of economic strength. Overall Household Spending, a key measure of consumer spending, declined by 1.9% in August from a nominal growth of 0.1% in July. Though the pace at which the consumer spending measure contracted in August was slower than expectations of a 2.6% decline, it prompted the need for fresh stimulus to boost private consumption.
Meanwhile, the Euro (EUR) has been underpinned against the Japanese Yen, its performance has remained weaker in comparison with other peers due to escalating European Central bank (ECB) dovish bets. Traders have priced in two more rate cuts of 25 basis points (bps) by the ECB this year, suggesting that the central bank will cut its Deposit Facility Rate in both the remaining meetings, which are scheduled for next week and in December.
Euro PRICE Today
The table below shows the percentage change of Euro (EUR) against listed major currencies today. Euro was the strongest against the Canadian Dollar.
| USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USD | 0.02% | -0.05% | -0.31% | 0.16% | -0.03% | -0.32% | -0.13% | |
| EUR | -0.02% | -0.07% | -0.31% | 0.13% | -0.05% | -0.27% | -0.18% | |
| GBP | 0.05% | 0.07% | -0.25% | 0.22% | -0.06% | -0.23% | -0.13% | |
| JPY | 0.31% | 0.31% | 0.25% | 0.48% | 0.27% | 0.00% | 0.15% | |
| CAD | -0.16% | -0.13% | -0.22% | -0.48% | -0.20% | -0.44% | -0.34% | |
| AUD | 0.03% | 0.05% | 0.06% | -0.27% | 0.20% | -0.25% | -0.07% | |
| NZD | 0.32% | 0.27% | 0.23% | -0.00% | 0.44% | 0.25% | 0.10% | |
| CHF | 0.13% | 0.18% | 0.13% | -0.15% | 0.34% | 0.07% | -0.10% |
The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the Euro from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the US Dollar, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent EUR (base)/USD (quote).
A majority of ECB policymakers are open to more interest rate cuts as fears of inflation remaining sticky have waned due to worsening economic growth. The Annual Harmonized Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) in the Eurozone has decelerated to 1.8% in September, according to flash estimates. Also, the German economy, the Eurozone’s largest nation, is estimated to end the year with a 0.2% decline in output, as per the German economic ministry.
Author
Sagar Dua
FXStreet
Sagar Dua is associated with the financial markets from his college days. Along with pursuing post-graduation in Commerce in 2014, he started his markets training with chart analysis.
