CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - The Japanese yen weakened against other major currencies in the Asian session on Tuesday, as traders remain cautious about the timing of the Bank of Japan's next interest rate hike.
Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda said on Monday that the benchmark rate will be increased if the economy improves more this year.
Concerns continue to remain regarding the interference of Japanese authorities in the foreign exchange market to support the native currency.
Japanese Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato issued a warning after the yen's decline that authorities will take appropriate action against overreactions.
Additionally, worries about the U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's trade policies and geopolitical risks all help to maintain the safe-haven JPY at a steady level.
Investors awaited more U.S. economic data this week for additional clues on the Fed's rate trajectory.
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump called a report from The Washington Post about him considering scaling back his tariff plans, 'fake news.'
After taking office on Jan. 20, Trump is expected to impose tariffs of 10 percent on global imports into the U.S. along with a 60 percent tariff on Chinese goods.
Many economists warned the move the move could drive up inflation and keep U.S. interest rates higher for longer.
In economic news, data from the Bank of Japan showed that the monetary base in Japan was down 1.0 percent on year in December, coming in at 658.524trillion yen. That missed expectations for an annual decline of 0.2 percent following the downwardly revised 0.3 percent contraction in November.
The safe-haven yen started trading lower against the euro and the pound since 2nd January 2025. While the yen traded lower against the U.S. dollar and the Swiss franc since 3rd January 2025.
In the Asian trading today, the yen fell to nearly a 6-month low of 158.42 against the U.S. dollar, from yesterday's closing value of 157.60. The next possible downside target for the yen is seen around the 159.00 region.
Against the euro, the pound and the Swiss franc, the yen slid to 8-day lows of 164.40, 198.26 and 174.91 from yesterday's closing quotes of 163.76, 197.30 and 174.21, respectively. If the yen extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 166.00 against the euro, 200.00 against the pound and 178.00 against the franc.
Against Australia, the New Zealand and the Canadian dollars, the yen slipped to near 1-1/2-month lows of 99.03, 89.56 and 110.47 from Monday's closing quotes of 98.40, 88.92 and 109.97, respectively. The yen may test support around 102.00 against the aussie, 91.00 against the kiwi and 111.00 against the loonie.
Looking ahead, U.K. S&P Global construction PMI for December, Eurozone CPI reports for December and unemployment rate for November and New Zealand Global Dairy Trade price index are due to be released in the European session.
In the New York session, U.S. and Canada trade data for November, U.S. Redbook report and Canada Ivey's PMI data for December are slated for release.
Copyright(c) 2025 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved
Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX
© 2025 AFX News
