Japanese Yen edges up from lows amid hawkish comments from BoJ’s Sato
- USD/JPY edges down to the 158.00 area from session highs near 158.50.
- Hawkish comments from a BoJ dovish policymaker have provided a moderate lift to the Yen.
- US Dollar strength and higher Oil prices are keeping JPY rallies limited so far.
The Japanese Yen (JPY) holds marginal gains against the US Dollar (USD) on Wednesday. The USD/JPY pair has pulled back to levels near 158.00 from two-week highs at 158.51 following hawkish comments by Bank of Japan (BoJ) board member Ayano Sato, although the overall US Dollar strength and higher Oil prices are keeping Yen rallies limited so far.
Sato, a dovish-leaning policymaker and one of the two committee members who voted against September’s rate hike, surprised markets earlier on Wednesday, showing openness to further monetary tightening. The BoJ policymaker affirmed in a Kyodo News interview that she supports “adjusting gradually” the bank’s monetary policy and that higher rates “can contribute to achieving sustainable economic growth.”
The Japanese Yen appreciated after the comments, but the impact on the USD/JPY pair has been moderate so far. The Greenback maintains its firm tone, with investors wary of selling the Greenback ahead of the release of the latest Federal Reserve (Fed) monetary policy meeting and with rising Oil prices weighing on oil-importing countries, such as Japan.
Brent Oil prices have bounced up nearly $4 from Tuesday’s lows, crossing the key $100 level. News of fresh attacks by the Iran-backed Houthis on Saudi Arabia and a storm heading into the US have renewed fears about supply constraints, offsetting investors’ optimism about the higher Crude flows through the Strait of Hormuz.
Technical Analysis: US Dollar remains capped below the 200-day SMA
USD/JPY trades at 158.08 with price action stalled below the 200-day simple moving average (SMA), a few pips above 158.50. Momentum indicators in the daily chart remain moderately bullish, with the Relative Strength Index (RSI) at 54.37 and the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) modestly above zero, hinting at improving upside momentum that has yet to overcome the medium-term trend barrier.
Above the mentioned 158.50 area, the pair might find some resistance at the late-September high around 159.00, ahead of the two-month high at 160.39. On the downside, the bottom of the recent range is at the September 20 and 30 lows in the 156.40-156.60 area. Further down, the September 17 low, at 155.35, will come into focus ahead of the six-month low, just below 153.00.
(The technical analysis of this story was written with the help of an AI tool. Know more.)
US Dollar Price Today
The table below shows the percentage change of US Dollar (USD) against listed major currencies today. US Dollar was the strongest against the Euro.
| USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USD | 0.56% | 0.25% | 0.00% | 0.09% | 0.17% | 0.26% | 0.17% | |
| EUR | -0.56% | -0.31% | -0.57% | -0.48% | -0.38% | -0.29% | -0.39% | |
| GBP | -0.25% | 0.31% | -0.27% | -0.16% | -0.07% | 0.02% | -0.07% | |
| JPY | 0.00% | 0.57% | 0.27% | 0.08% | 0.17% | 0.25% | 0.17% | |
| CAD | -0.09% | 0.48% | 0.16% | -0.08% | 0.08% | 0.18% | 0.10% | |
| AUD | -0.17% | 0.38% | 0.07% | -0.17% | -0.08% | 0.09% | 0.00% | |
| NZD | -0.26% | 0.29% | -0.02% | -0.25% | -0.18% | -0.09% | -0.08% | |
| CHF | -0.17% | 0.39% | 0.07% | -0.17% | -0.10% | -0.00% | 0.08% |
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 US Dollar from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the Japanese Yen, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent USD (base)/JPY (quote).
Author
Guillermo Alcala
FXStreet
Graduated in Communication Sciences at the Universidad del Pais Vasco and Universiteit van Amsterdam, Guillermo has been working as financial news editor and copywriter in diverse Forex-related firms, like FXStreet and Kantox.
