FXStreet (Mumbai) – The USD/JPY pair ran through fresh bids near the mid-point of the 122 handle at Tokyo start, now attempting a tepid bounce towards hourly 10-SMA located at 122.69.
USD/JPY supported at 122.50
Currently, the USD/JPY pair trades modestly flat at 122.64, having retreated almost 1 big figure from two-week near highs. The USD bulls are trying hard to recover lost ground, although the gains remain capped amid heavy selling seen in the Asian indices, which keeps the yen underpinned. Nikkei plunges -1.74% to 19,592 0.30%. While Australia’s S&P/ASX drops -1.81% to 5,132 points.
On Thursday, the US dollar faced double whammy from the surprisingly hawkish comments from ECB Draghi, which sparked a sharp rally in the EUR/USD pair and resulted in the USD reversal from twelve year highs. While poor ISM non-manufacturing PMI index along with a non-event Yellen’s testimony further exacerbated the pain in the buck.
Looking ahead, markets continue to digest the latest events that occurred in the previous session, while focus shifts back to the key US NFP report due later today.
USD/JPY Technical levels to watch
The prices remain slightly bid and find the immediate resistance at 122.84/87 (1h 200-SMA/ 20-DMA). A break above the last, the major could test 123/123.04 (round number/ 1h 20-SMA). While to the downside, the immediate support is placed at 122.27 (Dec 3 Low) below which 121.81 (200-DMA) would be tested.
(Market News Provided by FXstreet)