|

Japanese Yen pares losses as US Dollar momentum fades despite hawkish Fed stance

  • USD/JPY loses momentum after its recent rally, while the Japanese Yen remains fragile.
  • Fed Chair Kevin Warsh introduced communication changes, including a shorter policy statement, the removal of forward guidance, and five task forces to review key Fed frameworks.
  • The Japanese Yen remains near forty-year lows as intervention talk heats up.

The USD/JPY pair trades near 161.00 on Friday, easing slightly after reaching a two-year high of 161.81 on Thursday, and breaking a five-day winning streak for the US Dollar (USD).The Japanese Yen (JPY) remains fragile as pressure mounts over a possible new intervention by authorities to strengthen the currency.

Meanwhile, the US Dollar is taking a breather after the rally fueled by the Federal Reserve (Fed) policy meeting earlier this week. Chair Kevin Warsh introduced several changes to the Fed’s communication strategy. He said the policy statement would become shorter, simpler, and more focused on facts, while removing forward guidance. The new Fed Chair also announced five task forces to review communications, the balance sheet, data sources, productivity and employment, and the inflation framework.

The BoJ said Governor Kazuo Ueda will return to the office from June 23 after being discharged from the hospital, while continuing outpatient treatment for about two more weeks. Ueda had missed the latest policy meeting due to treatment for an infected liver cyst, leaving Deputy Governor Ryozo Himino to lead the post-meeting communication.

Chart Analysis USD/JPY

Short-term technical analysis:

On the 4-hour chart, USD/JPY trades at 161.27, retaining a bullish near-term bias as it holds above both the 20-period and 100-period Simple Moving Average (SMA) at 160.77 and 160.14, respectively. The pair is also trading above nearby horizontal support at 161.13, while the Relative Strength Index (RSI) at around 66 suggests firm but not yet extreme upside momentum, hinting that buyers still control the tape as long as these underlying levels remain intact.

On the topside, initial resistance emerges at 161.30, followed by a more notable cap at 161.45, where a break higher would likely open the way for an extension of the uptrend. On the downside, immediate protection is seen at 161.13, ahead of 161.00, with deeper pullbacks likely to encounter dynamic support at the 20-period SMA near 160.77 and then the 100-period SMA around 160.14.

(The technical analysis of this story was written with the help of an AI tool.)

Author

Agustin Wazne

Agustin Wazne joined FXStreet as a Junior News Editor, focusing on Commodities and covering Majors.

More from Agustin Wazne
Share:

Editor's Picks

British Pound eases to 1.3450 area following downwardly revised Manufacturing PMI data

The British Pound is trimming previous gains against the US Dollar on Monday, returning to the mid-range of the 1.3400s down from fresh seven-week highs, above 1.3500 earlier on the day. Weaker-than-expected UK manufacturing data added pressure on the Pound, which rallied at the Asian session opening, amid news of a halt to the hostilities in Iran.

EUR/USD challenges 1.1500 on Dollar’s recovery

EUR/USD now accelerates its downtrend and comes closer to the 1.1500 level on Monday. The pair’s correction follows the decent improvement in the US Dollar amid solid data US releases and easing concerns on the geopolitical front.

Gold: The $4,000 mark holds the downside for now

Gold adds to Friday’s pullback, although it remains well underpinned by the key $4,000 threshold per troy ounce on Monday. The US Dollar’s inconclusive price action seems enough to cap the yellow metal’s potential upside, although renewed hopes for a US-Iran peace deal and fading expectations of a Fed rate hike could limit the Greenback’s recovery.

Ethereum Price Forecast: BitMine extends share buyback spree, scoops over 10K ETH
Ethereum (ETH) treasury firm BitMine Immersion Technologies (BMNR) continued its share buyback spree last week after repurchasing 4.5 million shares of its common stock. This purchase brings the total stock buyback since July 1 to 16.1 million shares, part of a previously authorized $4 billion repurchase plan.
AI defies the disinflationary playbook: Why lower oil prices might not be enough to cool core inflation
The global economic landscape has been fixated on the Middle East since the US-Iran war started in late February, reacting to significant changes in crude Oil prices and assessing how they could influence inflation dynamics and growth outlook.
9-3: Is the Federal Reserve’s vote tally Warsh's new forward guidance?
The rate did not move. Neither did the statement, and that’s the more interesting fact. Set the July 29 Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) statement beside the one issued on June 17, and the two documents are identical apart from a single verb and a paragraph at the bottom naming three dissenters.