Yesterday the USDJPY showed limited movement in the early 147-yen range during Tokyo hours, but turned higher shortly after GMT 05:30, reaching near 148 yen as markets awaited the data release.

U.S. initial jobless claims released at GMT 12:30 showed a significant increase, causing the pair to hit a high of 148.18 immediately after the announcement before falling back. The price bottomed out at 146.98 yen shortly after GMT 16:00, and trading for the day closed at 147.20 yen.

Today the USDJPY saw buying pressure carry over from the previous day, reaching a high of 147.55 around GMT 05:00. With next week's U.S. FOMC meeting approaching, the market appears to be in consolidation mode.

Looking at the 1-hour chart of the USDJPY (as of GMT 05:30 on September 12), while limited up and down movements are visible, no clear directional bias has emerged. If the pair breaks above 148.18, it would be reasonable to follow the upward momentum.

(20-period Bollinger Band, showing ±1 and ±2 standard deviations)

The main economic indicators for today are as follows:

• GMT 14:00 U.S. September Michigan Consumer Sentiment, preliminary