USD/JPY eyes 132.00 as BoJ continues to favor a dovish policy, US PCE Inflation in focus

The USD/JPY pair is hovering near its weekly high at 131.75 in the early European session. The asset is expected to extend its upside journey towards 132.00 amid renewed fears of the continuation of ultra-loose monetary policy by the Bank of Japan (BoJ).

For the past few months, the Japanese Yen was attracting bullish bets on hopes that the BoJ will exit from its decade-long expansionary policy after the arrival of novel BoJ leadership. However, an absence of hawkish commentary from BoJ Governor Kazuo Ueda after holding the highest chair in the central bank has faded expectations of a shift in the policy stance.

Meanwhile, ultra-dovish commentary from ex-BoJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda has added fuel to fire. Ex-BoJ Kuroda cited “It is premature to debate an exit from easy monetary policy.” And, “More time is needed to stably and sustainably hit the price target.” The requirement of a dovish policy looks likely as the sustained inflation target has not been met yet.

Apart from that, receding fears of a potential United States banking crisis have faded the appeal for the Japanese Yen as a safe-haven. US authorities are making efforts in infusing confidence among households and investors that their deposits are safe.

Also, the US Dollar Index (DXY) has shown some recovery after correcting to near 102.40 as investors are expecting that fading fears of US banking shakedown could propel chances of one more rate hike by the Federal Reserve (Fed).

This week, the US core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index data will remain in focus. As per the consensus, monthly core PCE would accelerate by 0.4%, lower than the former expansion of 0.6%. And, the annual figure is expected to remain steady at 4.7%.