[December 27] USDJPY briefly exceeds 158, remains firm despite verbal intervention on yen weakness

2024.12.27 [December 27] USDJPY briefly exceeds 158, remains firm despite verbal intervention on yen weakness

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Recap of previous trading day (December 26)

Yesterday the USDJPY hit a low of 157.07 around GMT 00:00, then traded in the lower 157-yen range before turning upward around GMT 11:00.

Following the release of U.S. Initial jobless claims for the previous week at GMT 13:30, which showed better-than-expected results at 219,000 versus the forecast of 223,000, the market responded with dollar buying, reaching a high of 158.08 around GMT 15:00. Trading for the day closed at 157.96 yen.

Recap of the Tokyo market and outlook going forward

Today the USDJPY saw dollar selling pressure following Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato's verbal intervention against yen weakness, touching a low of 157.57 around GMT 02:00. As of GMT 04:00, it is trading in the 157.6 range.

Looking at the 1-hour chart of the USDJPY (as of GMT 03:50 on December 27), while the candlesticks temporarily reached -1 standard deviation, the middle line continues to trend upward. If it breaks above 158 again, the trend is likely to pursue even higher levels.