Investing.com - The U.S. dollar edged higher against the yen on Friday, as Thursday's stronger than expected reports on consumer spending and manufacturing in the U.S. continued to support the greenback, although gains were capped ahead of U.S. nonfarm payrolls data.
USD/JPY hit 102.48 during late Asian trade, the pair's highest since Wednesday; the pair subsequently consolidated at 102.47, adding 0.14%.
The pair was likely to find support at 101.96, the low of April 25 and resistance at 102.78, the high of April 29.
The dollar remained supported after the Commerce Department on Thursday reported that U.S. personal spending rose 0.9% in March, from an upwardly revised 0.5% the previous month and ahead of expectations of 0.6%.
Consumer spending is the single biggest source of U.S. economic growth, accounting for as much as two-thirds of economic activity.
Separately, the Institute for Supply Management said its manufacturing purchasing managers' index rose to 54.9 last month from 53.7 in March, compared to expectations for a reading of 54.3.
Investors were looking ahead to the upcoming April nonfarm payrolls report, which was expected to show that the recovery in the labor market was continuing.
In Japan, data on Friday showed that household spending rose 7.2% in March compared to a year earlier, after a 2.5% drop the previous month. Analysts had expected household spending to rise 1.0% in March.
The yen was fractionally lower against the euro, with EUR/JPY edging up 0.07% to 142.00.