Investing.com - The U.S. dollar traded modestly lower against the Japanese yen during Thursday’s Asian session despite a solid first-quarter GDP report out of the world’s third-largest economy.
In Asian trading Thursday, USD/JPY inched lower by 0.06% to 102.20. The pair was likely to find support at 101.26, Tuesday's low and resistance at 102.61, the session high.
Earlier Thursday, Japan's Cabinet Office said earlier Thursday that the country’s first-quarter GDP surged 3.5%, easily topping expectations calling for 2.7% growth. Perhaps more importantly, private consumption, which accounts for 60% of Japan’s GDP, represented 2.3% of the increase.
On a nominal basis, Japan’s GDP increased 1.5%, the best increase in a year. Japan’s first-quarter GDP report serves as the latest sign that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s yen devaluation tactics are working.
On a year-to-date basis, the yen is the worst-performing developed market currency having lost 16% against the greenback and 14% against the euro. The yens rapid decline has helped Japanese stocks surge, making those shares Asia’s best performers this year.
On Wednesday, Japanese government data showed that tertiary industry activity dropped 1.3% in March, more than the expected 0.6% fall, after a 1.2% increase the previous month.
In U.S. economic news, industrial production fell more than expected in April, contracting 0.5% after expanding a revised 0.3% in March.
Separately, the U.S. Department of Labor said the country's monthly producer price index fell 0.7% in April, outpacing analysts calls for a 0.6% fall and beyond the 0.6% decline during the previous month. The U.S. is the world’s largest oil-consuming nation.
Meanwhile, EUR/JPY fell 0.20% to 131.54 while AUD/JPY inched lower by 0.09% to 101.14. NZD/JPY rose 0.08% to 84.35.
In Asian trading Thursday, USD/JPY inched lower by 0.06% to 102.20. The pair was likely to find support at 101.26, Tuesday's low and resistance at 102.61, the session high.
Earlier Thursday, Japan's Cabinet Office said earlier Thursday that the country’s first-quarter GDP surged 3.5%, easily topping expectations calling for 2.7% growth. Perhaps more importantly, private consumption, which accounts for 60% of Japan’s GDP, represented 2.3% of the increase.
On a nominal basis, Japan’s GDP increased 1.5%, the best increase in a year. Japan’s first-quarter GDP report serves as the latest sign that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s yen devaluation tactics are working.
On a year-to-date basis, the yen is the worst-performing developed market currency having lost 16% against the greenback and 14% against the euro. The yens rapid decline has helped Japanese stocks surge, making those shares Asia’s best performers this year.
On Wednesday, Japanese government data showed that tertiary industry activity dropped 1.3% in March, more than the expected 0.6% fall, after a 1.2% increase the previous month.
In U.S. economic news, industrial production fell more than expected in April, contracting 0.5% after expanding a revised 0.3% in March.
Separately, the U.S. Department of Labor said the country's monthly producer price index fell 0.7% in April, outpacing analysts calls for a 0.6% fall and beyond the 0.6% decline during the previous month. The U.S. is the world’s largest oil-consuming nation.
Meanwhile, EUR/JPY fell 0.20% to 131.54 while AUD/JPY inched lower by 0.09% to 101.14. NZD/JPY rose 0.08% to 84.35.