Investing.com - The U.S. dollar edged lower against the yen on Friday, after the release of mostly downbeat Japanese economic reports as Thursday's U.S. data weighed broadly on demand for the greenback.
USD/JPY hit 119.12 during late Asian trade, the session low; the pair subsequently consolidated at 119.30, slipping 0.10%.
The pair was likely to find support at 118.44, the low of February 19 and resistance at 120.47, the high of February 12.
Official data earlier showed that Japan's household spending fell 0.3% last month, compared to expectations for a 0.4% rise, after a 0.4% increase in December.
A separate report showed that Japan's consumer prices rose at an annualized rate of 2.4% in January, in line with expectations, while core consumer prices, which exclude fresh food, rose at a rate of 2.2% last month, below expectations for a 2.3% increase.
Data also showed that Japan's retail sales declined at an annualized rate of 2.0% in January, more than the expected 1.3% drop, after a 0.2% uptick in December.
On a more positive note, preliminary data showed that Japan's industrial production increased by 4.0% in January, beating expectations for a 2.7% gain, after a 0.8% rise the previous month.
Meanwhile, the dollar remained under pressure after a string of disappointing U.S. data on Thursday dampened optimism over the strength of the country's economic recovery.
The U.S. Department of Labor reported that the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits increased by 31,000 to 313,000 last week from the previous week’s revised total of 282,000.
Data also showed that U.S. consumer prices declined 0.7% last month, compared to estimates for a decline of 0.6%, while core consumer prices, which exclude food and energy costs, increased by 0.2% in January, above expectations for a 0.1% increase.
On the upside, the U.S. Commerce Department said that total durable goods orders increased by 2.8% last month, above expectations for a gain of 1.7%, while core durable goods orders, excluding volatile transportation items, inched up 0.3% in January, disappointing forecasts for a 0.5% gain.
The yen was steady against the euro, with EUR/JPY at 133.75.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release revised data on fourth quarter growth, as well as reports on pending home sales, business activity in the Chicago region and consumer sentiment.