USD/JPY turns flat in the day after diving to a daily low of 155.48 during Friday’s session, in the aftermath of two straight days of Japanese authorities intervening in the FX markets to strengthen the Yen, which had weakened past the 160.00 figure. The pair trades at 156.67, flattish.
USD/JPY holds flat as Tokyo action fades and US jobs data looms next
On Thursday, Japanese authorities intervened in the FX markets. Data from the Bank of Japan on Friday revealed that it spent as much as $35 billion USD, slightly below the $36.8 billion used in the July 2024 intervention.
Meanwhile, traders cheered news that Iran submitted a proposal to Washington via Pakistan. The US extended the blockade affecting Iran’s economy, while the Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf publicly criticized Washington’s policies on X, remarking, “Good luck blockading a country with those borders.”
The US ISM Manufacturing PMI in April steadied, coming at 52.7, unchanged from March, yet it showed that manufacturing activity remains solid. Meanwhile, three of the four dissenters at the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting on Wednesday explained their reasons for dissenting.
Beth Hammack of the Cleveland Fed noted that inflationary pressures are expanding due to rising oil prices. She stated that including an easing bias is now inappropriate given current projections.
Neel Kashkari of the Minneapolis Fed warned that a lengthy closure of the Strait of Hormuz or damage to energy facilities could cause a price shock, prompting the US central bank to tighten policy to manage inflation expectations. In the meantime, the Dallas Fed’s Lorie Logan stated that the Fed’s next move could be a cut or a hike.
Next week the Japanese economic docket is absent. Conversely, the US economic docket is packed, with traders eyeing Factory Orders, Fed speeches, the ISM Services PMI, and plenty of jobs data, led by the report on April’s Nonfarm Payrolls.
USD/JPY Price Forecast: Technical outlook
In the daily chart, USD/JPY trades at 156.72, keeping a bearish near-term tone as it holds under the latest simple moving average cluster near 158.59 and below the descending trend-line drawn from 159.23. The pair still leans on underlying trend support, with price trading above the longer-term rising line that was last broken near 155.21, while the Relative Strength Index (14) at 37 suggests weakening momentum but not yet oversold conditions.
On the topside, initial resistance is located around the simple moving average cluster near 158.59, ahead of the descending trend-line barrier from 159.23 and the psychological horizontal cap at 160.00. On the downside, immediate support is seen at the reclaimed longer-term rising trend area near 155.21, with a deeper pullback exposing the shorter-term uptrend base around 153.39 if selling pressure extends.
(The technical analysis of this story was written with the help of an AI tool.)
Japanese Yen Price This week
The table below shows the percentage change of Japanese Yen (JPY) against listed major currencies this week. Japanese Yen was the strongest against the US Dollar.
USD EUR GBP JPY CAD AUD NZD CHF USD -0.57% -0.85% -1.76% -0.81% -1.23% -0.89% -0.97% EUR 0.57% -0.25% -1.25% -0.21% -0.64% -0.29% -0.37% GBP 0.85% 0.25% -0.96% 0.05% -0.38% -0.04% -0.12% JPY 1.76% 1.25% 0.96% 1.01% 0.57% 0.99% 0.88% CAD 0.81% 0.21% -0.05% -1.01% -0.38% -0.02% -0.16% AUD 1.23% 0.64% 0.38% -0.57% 0.38% 0.35% 0.27% NZD 0.89% 0.29% 0.04% -0.99% 0.02% -0.35% -0.09% CHF 0.97% 0.37% 0.12% -0.88% 0.16% -0.27% 0.09%
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).
Editorial note: This recovered market brief has been cleaned and reclassified by Next Move Markets for educational market intelligence. It is not investment advice.
Next Move Markets desk view
For active traders, this brief should be read through the lens of currency markets rather than as a standalone headline. The key question is whether the theme behind USD/JPY steadies after Japan’s intervention checks Yen slide can influence positioning beyond the first reaction. That means watching central-bank expectations, yield differentials, dollar momentum and risk appetite together, not in isolation.
A richer trading read comes from separating the catalyst from confirmation. The catalyst explains why markets are paying attention; confirmation comes from price action, liquidity and cross-asset behavior after the headline is digested. If those signals do not align, traders should treat the move as fragile and keep risk tighter.
What traders should watch next
- Whether the move is confirmed by the U.S. dollar index and short-term rate expectations.
- How London and New York liquidity react once the initial headline risk is absorbed.
- Whether price action respects the latest support and resistance zones instead of fading immediately.
- Any follow-up comments from central-bank officials or data releases that change the rate path.
Risk context
This article is a market-intelligence brief, not a trade recommendation. Before acting on the theme, traders should define invalidation, position size and the time horizon of the setup. The same headline can support a short-term reaction and still fail as a multi-session trend if liquidity, policy expectations or broader sentiment move the other way.
Scenario map
The base case is that traders keep this theme on the radar while waiting for confirmation from central-bank expectations, yield differentials, dollar momentum and risk appetite. A stronger continuation scenario requires follow-through after the first reaction, preferably with related assets moving in the same direction. A failure scenario develops if the headline is quickly absorbed, volatility fades and price returns inside the previous range.
For currency markets, the most useful approach is to compare the article theme with live market behavior. If the market confirms the narrative, pullbacks can become more constructive. If the market rejects it, the headline becomes background noise rather than a trading driver.
Execution discipline
- Define the level first: traders should know where the idea is invalidated before thinking about upside or downside.
- Separate news from setup: USD/JPY steadies after Japan’s intervention checks Yen slide may explain attention, but entry quality still depends on timing, liquidity and risk/reward.
- Watch confirmation: a clean move usually appears across related markets, not only in one isolated instrument.
- Control exposure: if volatility expands, smaller position sizing can be more professional than chasing the headline.
Next Move Markets treats this kind of brief as a starting point for preparation: identify the driver, map the scenarios, then wait for the market to prove which path is actually being priced.
