By: Barbara Zigah
The Japanese Yen continues to hold close to recent lows against the U.S. Dollar, as investors are hesitant to move too aggressively ahead of next week’s policy meeting by the Bank of Japan which is expected to announce more easing measures.
As reported at 12:39 p.m. (JST) in Tokyo, the USD/JPY pair was trading at 81.63 Yen off the 9-day peak of 81.74 Yen struck on Thursday. The Euro also climbed higher against the Yen, with the EUR/JPY pair trading at 107.35 Yen, well off Monday’s low of 104.63 Yen. The Bank of Japan’s governor confirmed recently that they will continue to take whatever measures are necessary until they are in reach of a 1% inflation target, and additional easing was in fact encouraged by the IMF who said that the Bank should take work harder to support the fragile economy.
Over the past year, the Japanese Yen has weakened 6% against the U.S. Dollar, though somewhat less significantly against other currencies,, and while it can be attributed to some extent by the actions and intentions of the Bank of Japan, analysts point out that recent weakness can be attributed to the relative calm in the Eurozone which has helped to whet risk appetite.