USD/JPY ended last week in the upper ¥156 range as the yen weakened. The order book showed strong buying interest around ¥156 and ¥155, while selling interest was prominent in the upper ¥157 range and around the mid-¥160 range.
USD/JPY weakened slightly last Friday, approaching around ¥156.00 in the morning, but rebounded without breaking below ¥156. Toward the close, trading took on a range-bound character, and the pair ended the session with the yen weaker for the first time in 4 business days. With US economic data releases due this week, the market is assessing the likely direction of prices.
Today's chart analysis found particularly strong buying interest around ¥156 in the order book, followed by strong buying interest around ¥155. Meanwhile, selling interest was strong in the upper ¥157 range and around the mid-¥160 range, making these levels a focus for market participants.
An analysis of correlations between USD/JPY and other currency pairs found strong correlations over the past 24 hours with EUR/JPY, GBP/JPY and AUD/JPY, while inverse correlations were observed with GBP/USD and EUR/USD.
Among the eight major currencies, the New Zealand dollar was the strongest recently and the Swiss franc the weakest. The yen moved above and below zero, while the dollar remained mostly in positive territory.
US economic data releases are scheduled this week, including the first day of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting. Durable goods orders, consumer spending-related statistics and US housing indicators are among the data points attracting market attention.