USD/JPY struggles to capitalize on modest intraday gains, up a little around mid-142.00s

• USD/JPY kicks off the new week on a positive note and stalls Friday’s pullback from a multi-week top.
• The upbeat market mood, Japan's politics and mixed data from Japan undermine the safe-haven JPY. 
• The divergent BoJ-Fed policy expectations keep a lid on any further appreciating move for the pair. 

The USD/JPY pair attracts some dip-buyers at the start of a new week and reverses a part of Friday's sharp retracement slide from the 146.50 area or over a three-week high. Spot prices, however, retreat a few pips in the last hour and currently trade around mid-142.00s, up less than 0.25% for the day.

The already upbeat market mood gets an additional boost in reaction to more stimulus announced by China over the weekend. In fact, the People's Bank of China (PBOC) on Sunday said it would tell banks to lower mortgage rates for existing home loans. Furthermore, Japan's incoming Prime Minister (PM) Shigeru Ishiba said that the Bank of Japan's (BoJ) monetary policy must remain accommodative to underpin a fragile economic recovery. This, along with news that the new PMI is planning a general election for October 27 and mixed Japanese economic data, undermines the Japanese Yen (JPY) and is seen lending support to the USD/JPY pair. 

A government report published earlier today showed that Japan's Retail Sales rose 2.8% in August from a year earlier as compared to market expectations for an increase of 2.3% and the 2.7% growth registered in the previous month. This, however, was offset by dismal Industrial Production data, which contracted more than anticipated, by 3.3% during the reported month and did little to impress the JPY bulls. That said, the growing market conviction that the BoJ will hike interest rates again by the end of this year helps limit any meaningful JPY losses. Apart from this, subdued US Dollar (USD) price action contributes to capping the USD/JPY pair. 

The USD Index (DXY), which tracks the Greenback against a basket of currencies, languishes near its lowest level since July 2023 touched on Friday amid bets for a more aggressive policy easing by the Federal Reserve (Fed). This, in turn, warrants some caution before positioning for a further intraday appreciating move for the USD/JPY pair. Traders now look to the release of the official Chinese PMI prints for some impetus. The focus, however, will be on Fed Chair Jerome Powell's speech later during the US session.

Japanese Yen FAQs

What key factors drive the Japanese Yen?

The Japanese Yen (JPY) is one of the world’s most traded currencies. Its value is broadly determined by the performance of the Japanese economy, but more specifically by the Bank of Japan’s policy, the differential between Japanese and US bond yields, or risk sentiment among traders, among other factors.

How do the decisions of the Bank of Japan impact the Japanese Yen?

One of the Bank of Japan’s mandates is currency control, so its moves are key for the Yen. The BoJ has directly intervened in currency markets sometimes, generally to lower the value of the Yen, although it refrains from doing it often due to political concerns of its main trading partners. The current BoJ ultra-loose monetary policy, based on massive stimulus to the economy, has caused the Yen to depreciate against its main currency peers. This process has exacerbated more recently due to an increasing policy divergence between the Bank of Japan and other main central banks, which have opted to increase interest rates sharply to fight decades-high levels of inflation.

How does the differential between Japanese and US bond yields impact the Japanese Yen?

The BoJ’s stance of sticking to ultra-loose monetary policy has led to a widening policy divergence with other central banks, particularly with the US Federal Reserve. This supports a widening of the differential between the 10-year US and Japanese bonds, which favors the US Dollar against the Japanese Yen.

How does broader risk sentiment impact the Japanese Yen?

The Japanese Yen is often seen as a safe-haven investment. This means that in times of market stress, investors are more likely to put their money in the Japanese currency due to its supposed reliability and stability. Turbulent times are likely to strengthen the Yen’s value against other currencies seen as more risky to invest in.

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