USD/JPY seesaws below 106.50 amid broad US dollar weakness

USD/JPY looks for fresh direction to break the immediate trading range.
US dollar drops amid downbeat data, pessimistic comments from the Fed policymakers and hopes of negative Fed rate.
Risk-on sentiment restricts the pair’s downside.
Japan’s Household Spending, Jibun Bank Services PMI in the spotlight, for now.

Anil Panchal FXStreet

Having defied a four-day losing streak the previous day, USD/JPY searches for firm direction around 106.30 amid early Friday morning in Asia. Even if the broad US dollar weakness keeps the tab on the pair’s upside off-late, risk-on sentiment has also contributed towards limiting the quote’s declines.

Bulls and bears jostle amid mixed clues…

Higher than expected US Jobless Claims, to 3,169K versus 3,000 forecasts, keeps the fears of a worrisome employment report for April, up for publishing today. Also adding to the greenback weakness could be the comments from the Fed policymakers suggesting the worst is ahead, despite the central bank’s readiness to act. Furthermore, Fed fund pricing indicators signaling a negative Fed rate also weighed on the US dollar.

On the other hand, risk-tone sentiment turned light after Bloomberg mentioned that the top US-China trade negotiators will be on the phone early next week. Also, news that Japan approved Gilead’s famous Remdesivir offered additional strength to the risk-tone as traders in Tokyo returned from three days of holidays.

While portraying the trading sentiment, Wall Street registered gains whereas US Treasuries dropped by the end of Thursday’s session.

Looking forward, Japan’s Household Spending and Jibun Bank Services PMI can offer immediate direction to the pair ahead of the pre-NFP trading lull. Forecasts suggest, Overall Household Spending to slump to -6.7% from -0.3% while Jibun Bank Services PMI could weaken to 22.8 from 33.8. For the US April month employment report, headline Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) could drop to -22000K from -701K whereas Unemployment Rate might zoom up to 14.0% versus 4.4% earlier.

Other than the economics, updates concerning the US-China relations and economic restart in the US, Europe, coupled with virus data, can also direct the pair’s near-term moves.

Technical analysis

Sellers look for entry below a three-week-old falling trend line, at 106.00 now, quickly followed by March 10 top near 105.90. Meanwhile, the monthly resistance line, currently around 107.15, becomes an important upside barrier for the buyers.

Additional important levels

Overview
Today last price	106.3
Today Daily Change	0.18
Today Daily Change %	0.17%
Today daily open	106.12

Trends
Daily SMA20	107.37
Daily SMA50	107.7
Daily SMA100	108.65
Daily SMA200	108.26

Levels
Previous Daily High	106.63
Previous Daily Low	105.99
Previous Weekly High	107.62
Previous Weekly Low	106.36
Previous Monthly High	109.38
Previous Monthly Low	106.36
Daily Fibonacci 38.2%	106.23
Daily Fibonacci 61.8%	106.38
Daily Pivot Point S1	105.87
Daily Pivot Point S2	105.61
Daily Pivot Point S3	105.23
Daily Pivot Point R1	106.5
Daily Pivot Point R2	106.88
Daily Pivot Point R3	107.14

Author

Anil Panchal

FXStreet

Anil Panchal has nearly 15 years of experience in tracking financial markets. With a keen interest in macroeconomics, Anil aptly tracks global news/updates and stays well-informed about the global financial moves and their implications.

EUR/USD faces next resistance near 1.1930

EUR/USD has surrendered its earlier intraday advance on Thursday and is now hovering uncomfortably around the 1.1860 region amid modest gains in the US Dolla. Moving forward, markets are exoected to closely follow Friday’s release of US CPI data.

GBP/USD inching closer to 1.36

The Pound Sterling edged higher to 1.3640 on Thursday, recovering from an earlier pullback after stronger-than-expected US jobs data initially weighed on the pair. The Bank of England held rates at 3.75% at its February 4 meeting in a narrow 5-4 vote split, with four members preferring a 25 basis point cut to 3.50%.

Gold falls to near $4,900 as selling pressure intensifies

Gold price faces some selling pressure around $4,910 during the early Asian session on Friday. The yellow metal tumbles over 3.50% on the day, with algorithmic traders appearing to amplify the precious metal’s sudden drop. Traders will closely monitor the release of the US Consumer Price Index inflation report for January, which will be released later on Friday.

Ethereum investors face huge unrealized losses following price slump

US spot Ethereum exchange-traded funds flipped negative again on Wednesday after recording net outflows of $129.1 million, reversing mild inflows seen at the beginning of the week, per SoSoValue data. Fidelity's FETH was responsible for more than half of withdrawals, posting outflows of $67 million.

A tale of two labour markets: Headline strength masks underlying weakness

Undoubtedly, yesterday’s delayed US January jobs report delivered a strong headline – one that surpassed most estimates. However, optimism quickly faded amid sobering benchmark revisions.

Aster Price Forecast: Demand sparks on Binance Wallet partnership for on-chain perpetuals

Aster is up roughly 9% so far on Thursday, hinting at the breakout of a crucial resistance level. Aster partners up with Binance wallet for the second season of the on-chain perpetuals challenge.