Investing.com - The U.S. dollar erased losses against the yen on Thursday, rising to a three-day high as upbeat U.S. jobless data and hopes for an imminent bailout request from Spain lifted market sentiment.
USD/JPY pulled away from 77.95, the pair's lowest since October 1, to hit 78.51 during European afternoon trade, rising 0.42%.
The pair was likely to find support at 77.79, the low of October 1 and resistance at 78.71, the high of October 8.
The U.S. Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits last week fell by 30,000 to a seasonally adjusted 339,000, compared to expectations for an increase of 1,000 to 370,000.
The previous week’s figure was revised up to 369,000 from a previously reported 367,000.
A separate report showed that the U.S. trade deficit widened to USD44.2 billion in August, broadly in line with market expectations, as imports outpaced exports.
Sentiment was also boosted by optimism that a downgrade on Spain by ratings agency Standard & Poor’s would force the country into requesting a formal bailout.
S&P cut the country’s credit rating to BBB-minus with a negative outlook late Wednesday, just one notch above junk status, citing “mounting risks to Spain’s public finances.”
The ratings agency also warned that the capacity of Spanish political institutions to deal with the challenges presented by the current fiscal and economic crisis is declining.
Elsewhere, the yen was lower against the euro with EUR/JPY adding 0.19%, to hit 100.86.
Also Thursday, Bank of Japan Governor Masaaki Shirakawa said he would raise the issue of the impact of the yen’s appreciation on the nation’s economy at the upcoming G7 meeting in Tokyo.
The minutes of the BoJ’s September meeting published earlier indicated that some policymakers were leaning towards more aggressive easing measures, boosting expectations that the central bank may ease policy again later this month.
USD/JPY pulled away from 77.95, the pair's lowest since October 1, to hit 78.51 during European afternoon trade, rising 0.42%.
The pair was likely to find support at 77.79, the low of October 1 and resistance at 78.71, the high of October 8.
The U.S. Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits last week fell by 30,000 to a seasonally adjusted 339,000, compared to expectations for an increase of 1,000 to 370,000.
The previous week’s figure was revised up to 369,000 from a previously reported 367,000.
A separate report showed that the U.S. trade deficit widened to USD44.2 billion in August, broadly in line with market expectations, as imports outpaced exports.
Sentiment was also boosted by optimism that a downgrade on Spain by ratings agency Standard & Poor’s would force the country into requesting a formal bailout.
S&P cut the country’s credit rating to BBB-minus with a negative outlook late Wednesday, just one notch above junk status, citing “mounting risks to Spain’s public finances.”
The ratings agency also warned that the capacity of Spanish political institutions to deal with the challenges presented by the current fiscal and economic crisis is declining.
Elsewhere, the yen was lower against the euro with EUR/JPY adding 0.19%, to hit 100.86.
Also Thursday, Bank of Japan Governor Masaaki Shirakawa said he would raise the issue of the impact of the yen’s appreciation on the nation’s economy at the upcoming G7 meeting in Tokyo.
The minutes of the BoJ’s September meeting published earlier indicated that some policymakers were leaning towards more aggressive easing measures, boosting expectations that the central bank may ease policy again later this month.