Key Highlights
- The US Dollar is trading in a bullish zone above the 107.00 support against the Japanese Yen.
- There are two important bullish trend lines forming with support at 107.00-10 on the 4-hours chart of USD/JPY.
- The US Initial Jobless Claims for the week ending April 14, 2018 declined from 233K to 232K.
- Japan’s National CPI in March 2018 (YoY) increased 1.1%, similar to the forecast.
USDJPY Technical Analysis
This past week, the US Dollar remained well supported above the 106.50 level against the Japanese Yen. This week, the USD/JPY pair is forming a crucial support base above the 107.00 level.
Looking at the 4-hours chart, there are two important bullish trend lines forming with support at 107.00-10. The pair recently traded as high as 107.77 before correcting lower. It declined and tested the 106.90 level along with the bullish trend lines.
Downsides were limited, resulting in an upside move above 107.00. The pair moved above the 50% Fib retracement level of the last drop from the 107.77 high to 106.88 low.
At the moment, the pair is positioned well above the 100 simple moving average (red, 4-hours), which is a positive sign. As long as the pair is above 107.00 and the 100 SMA, it may perhaps continue to move higher.
On the upside, the 107.60-70 area is a key barrier for more gains. Above 107.70, the pair will most likely break the 108.00 level for more upsides.
Recently, the US Initial Jobless Claims report for the week ending April 14, 2018 was released by the US Department of Labor. The market was looking was a decline from the previous reading of 233K to 230K.
However, the result was on the lower side as there was only 1K decline in claims from 233K to 232K.
The report added:
The 4-week moving average was 231,250, an increase of 1,250 from the previous week’s unrevised average of 230,000.
Overall, the market sentiment is favoring the US Dollar and USD/JPY is likely to extend upsides in the near term.
Economic Releases to Watch Today
- Canadian Consumer Price Index March 2018 (MoM) – Forecast +0.4%, versus +0.6% previous.
- Canadian Consumer Price Index March 2018 (YoY) – Forecast +2.4%, versus +2.2% previous.
- Canadian Retail Sales Feb 2018 (MoM) – Forecast +0.3%, versus +0.3% previous.
- Canadian Retail Sales ex Autos Feb 2018 (MoM) – Forecast +0.3%, versus +0.9% previous.
