USD/JPY retraces from 3-day top as risk-on takes a breather

Asian traders look for further details to extend the USD/JPY pair’s previous run-up as a pullback emerges on the chart around 106.60 heading into Tuesday’s European session.

While the People’s Bank of China (PBOC) and it's Vice Governor Liu He both affirmed the need for interest rate reforms, Australian Prime Minister (PM) suggested getting used to the US-China trade war. On the positive side, the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston’s President Eric Rosengren advocated for the US central bank’s pause in the rate cut trajectory. Further, the US showed readiness to have strong trading ties with the UK.

Traders showed less reaction to the developments of the same old stories as an empty economic calendar offers no clues for fresh impulse. Also, investors are more interested in the outcome of the key weekly events, namely the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) Minutes and the global central bank leaders’ appearance at the Jackson Hole Symposium.

Equity markets flash 0.20% gains, as indicated by the MSCI’s Asia Pacific Index (ex-Japan), whereas the US 10-year treasury yield clings to 1.594%, with no major change after gaining seven basis points, by the press time.

Technical Analysis

A two-week-old descending trend-line at 106.90 limits the pair’s near-term upside ahead of July month low near 107.20, a break of which can propel the quote to 50-day simple moving average (DMA) level of 107.62. Meanwhile, 106.00, 105.70 and 105.00 will be on the sellers' radar.