USD/JPY – Dollar Gains As Unemployment Claims Drop

The yen has lost ground in Wednesday trading, as USD/JPY has trades in the high 101 range. In economic news, the US dollar got a boost as Unemployment Claims dropped to its lowest levels in two months. However, Core Durable Goods Orders posted a decline and fell short of the estimate. There are no Japanese releases on Wednesday.

Unemployment Claims continues to look sharp, as the key indicator dropped to 316 thousand, its lowest level in two months. This figure easily beat the estimate of 331 thousand. However, the news was not as good from the manufacturing sector, as Core Durable Goods Orders posted a drop of 0.1% for the third month running. The key indicator has not posted a gain since May. Durable Goods was awful, posting a decline of 2.0%, well below the estimate of a 1.5% drop.

In Japan, the BOJ released the minutes from the last policy meeting, and some policymakers expressed their uneasiness about inflation numbers. Although we are seeing inflation in the economy, there is concern that the Bank’s 2% inflation target may not be met anytime soon. Several of the Bank’s policymakers dissented with some parts of the Bank’s October outlook report, and said that they see a greater downside risk to the economy. These sentiments could weigh on the yen, which continues to struggle.

USD/JPY for Wednesday, November 27, 2013

USD/JPY November 27 at 14:20 GMT

USD/JPY 101.83 H: 101.89 L: 101.24

USD/JPY Technical

• USD/JPY has posted gains on Wednesday, as the pair is again within striking distance of the 102 line.
• The pair continues to face resistance at 102.53. This is followed by a resistance line at 103.30, which has remained intact since late May.
• 101.19 is providing support. This line has some breathing room as the pair trades at higher levels. It is followed by support at the key line of 100.
• Current range: 101.19 to 102.53

Further levels in both directions:

• Below: 101.19, 100.00, 98.92, 98.15, 97.18 and 96.00
• Above: 102.53, 103.30, 104.17 and 105.70

OANDA’s Open Positions Ratio

USD/JPY ratio is pointing to gains in long positions on Wednesday trading. This movement is reflected in the pair’s current movement, as the dollar has posted gains against the yen. The ratio is close to an even split between long and short positions, which reflects a lack of trader bias as to which direction the pair might take.

The pair is moving higher on Wednesday. We could see USD/JPY push closer to the 102 line in the North American session.

USD/JPY Fundamentals

• 13:30 US Core Durable Goods Orders. Estimate.0.5%. Actual -0.1%.
• 13:30 US Unemployment Claims. Estimate 331K. Actual 316K.
• 13:30 US Durable Goods Orders. Estimate -1.5%. Actual -2.0%
• 14:45 US Chicago PMI. Estimate 60.6 points.
• 14:55 US Revised UoM Consumer Sentiment. Estimate 73.1 points.
• 14:55 US Revised UoM Inflation Expectations.
• 15:00 CB Leading Index. Estimate 0.1%.
• 15:30 US Crude Oil Inventories. Estimate 0.5M.
• 17:00 US Natural Gas Storage. Estimate -11B.

*Key releases are highlighted in bold

*All release times are GMT

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