USD/JPY gains ground near two-month low near 151.00 as Yen weakens across the board
- USD/JPY advances to near 152.00 at the expense of the Japanese Yen.
- US President Trump announces that he is prepared to impose 25% tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum.
- Investors will pay close attention to Fed Powell’s testimony on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The USD/JPY pair attracts strong bids near the two-month low of 151.00 and bounces back to near 152.00 at the start of the week. The asset strengthens as the Japanese Yen (JPY) weakens across the board after the release of the weak Japan Current Account data for Japan.
Japanese Yen PRICE Today
The table below shows the percentage change of Japanese Yen (JPY) against listed major currencies today. Japanese Yen was the strongest against the Canadian Dollar.
| USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USD | 0.04% | 0.05% | 0.36% | 0.36% | -0.12% | 0.07% | 0.08% | |
| EUR | -0.04% | 0.08% | 0.45% | 0.44% | -0.16% | 0.11% | 0.12% | |
| GBP | -0.05% | -0.08% | 0.21% | 0.33% | -0.24% | 0.03% | 0.04% | |
| JPY | -0.36% | -0.45% | -0.21% | -0.01% | -0.39% | -0.27% | -0.24% | |
| CAD | -0.36% | -0.44% | -0.33% | 0.01% | -0.46% | -0.33% | -0.32% | |
| AUD | 0.12% | 0.16% | 0.24% | 0.39% | 0.46% | 0.28% | 0.29% | |
| NZD | -0.07% | -0.11% | -0.03% | 0.27% | 0.33% | -0.28% | 0.00% | |
| CHF | -0.08% | -0.12% | -0.04% | 0.24% | 0.32% | -0.29% | -0.01% |
The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the Japanese Yen from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the US Dollar, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent JPY (base)/USD (quote).
The Ministry of Japan reported that the Current Account balance was 1,077.3 billion Yen, almost one-third of November’s reading of 3,352.5 billion Yen.
The Japanese Yen was outperforming its peers last week on firming speculation that the Bank of Japan (BoJ) will raise interest rates further, a scenario that will reduce interest rate differentials with other central banks.
Meanwhile, the US Dollar (USD) is slightly higher amid a risk-aversion mood on renewed fears of a global trade war. On the weekend, United States (US) President Donald Trump threatened to impose 25% tariffs on all imports of steel and aluminum and reciprocal tariffs over nations where he sees unfair trade practices.
The US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the Greenback’s value against six major currencies, is 0.1% higher, around 108.20, but has dropped from the intraday high of 108.50.
Investors worry that Trump’s international agenda will impact the US economy and cause inflation. This scenario would force Federal Reserve (Fed) policymakers to maintain a cautious stance on interest rates for longer.
For more guidance on the monetary policy outlook, investors will focus on Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s testimony before the Congress on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Japanese Yen FAQs
The Japanese Yen (JPY) is one of the world’s most traded currencies. Its value is broadly determined by the performance of the Japanese economy, but more specifically by the Bank of Japan’s policy, the differential between Japanese and US bond yields, or risk sentiment among traders, among other factors.
One of the Bank of Japan’s mandates is currency control, so its moves are key for the Yen. The BoJ has directly intervened in currency markets sometimes, generally to lower the value of the Yen, although it refrains from doing it often due to political concerns of its main trading partners. The BoJ ultra-loose monetary policy between 2013 and 2024 caused the Yen to depreciate against its main currency peers due to an increasing policy divergence between the Bank of Japan and other main central banks. More recently, the gradually unwinding of this ultra-loose policy has given some support to the Yen.
Over the last decade, the BoJ’s stance of sticking to ultra-loose monetary policy has led to a widening policy divergence with other central banks, particularly with the US Federal Reserve. This supported a widening of the differential between the 10-year US and Japanese bonds, which favored the US Dollar against the Japanese Yen. The BoJ decision in 2024 to gradually abandon the ultra-loose policy, coupled with interest-rate cuts in other major central banks, is narrowing this differential.
The Japanese Yen is often seen as a safe-haven investment. This means that in times of market stress, investors are more likely to put their money in the Japanese currency due to its supposed reliability and stability. Turbulent times are likely to strengthen the Yen’s value against other currencies seen as more risky to invest in.
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