Yen Weakens, Markets Await BOJ's Next Action
The yen weakened against all G10 currencies on Friday after Tokyo inflation data showed a larger-than-expected decline. Consumer prices in Tokyo, excluding fresh food, rose only 2.3% in December, down from 2.8% in the previous month. Although inflation slowed slightly, this fueled speculation about when the Bank of Japan (BOJ) will resume interest rate hikes. USD/JPY strengthened by 0.4% to 156.49, reflecting the weaker yen.
Furthermore, Japanese industrial production in November also fell 2.6%, worse than the 2% decline expected, adding to negative sentiment towards the yen. However, Abhijit Surya, senior economist at Capital Economics, stated that this data is unlikely to deter the BOJ from continuing to tighten monetary policy in the coming months.
Meanwhile, in other currency markets, GBP/USD fell 0.2% to 1.3499, and EUR/USD consolidated at 1.1784, with AUD/USD trading flat at 0.6706. The yield on the 10-year US Treasury bond rose slightly to 4.14%, indicating a stable trend in the US dollar despite fluctuations in other markets. (az)
Source: Newsmaker.id