Investing.com - The dollar held steady against the yen on Thursday after plunging earlier on reports that the Federal Reserve may be ready to stimulate the U.S. economy if it doesn't gain steam really soon.
In Asian trading on Thursday, USD/JPY was trading at 78.57, down 0.01%, up from a session low of 78.52 and off a high of 78.58.
The pair was likely to find support at 78.30, the low from August 22, and resistance at 79.05, the high from Aug. 15.
The Federal Reserve will likely stimulate the U.S. economy with monetary easing tools if it doesn't recover at a quicker pace, the U.S. central bank revealed in the minutes of its recent monetary policy meeting.
"Many members judged that additional monetary accommodation would likely be warranted fairly soon unless incoming information pointed to a substantial and sustainable strengthening in the pace of the economic recovery," the minutes read.
"Several members noted the benefits of accumulating further information that could help clarify the contours of the outlook for economic activity and inflation as well as the need for further policy action."
The comments sparked a dollar selloff on the notion that the Federal Reserve will announce plans to roll out a new round of quantitative easing soon.
Quantitative easing, under which the Fed buys bonds such as Treasury holdings and mortgage-backed securities from banks, weakens the dollar to spur recovery.
The dollar plunged against the yen earlier though it pared back earlier losses, as both currencies are safe-haven asset classes.
The Fed has rolled out two rounds of quantitative easing since the financial crisis hit in 2008, injecting USD2.3 trillion into the economy by acquiring assets held by banks.
Meanwhile, existing home sales came in weaker than expected, spurring more talk of Federal Reserve intervention.
Sales of previously owned homes rose 2.3% in July to 4.47 million units, the National Association of Realtors reported earlier.
Analysts were expecting the number to hit 4.52 million units, however.
Housing, a primary factor that sent the U.S. economy tumbling into the worst decline since the Great Depression, continues to show signs of bumping along a bottom and refuses to display marked improvement.
The yen was down against the pound and down against the euro, with GBP/JPY up 0.11% and trading at 124.94 and EUR/JPY up 0.13% and trading at 98.59.
Later Thursday, the U.S. will release initial jobless claims, followed by preliminary data on manufacturing activity and official data on new home sales.
In Asian trading on Thursday, USD/JPY was trading at 78.57, down 0.01%, up from a session low of 78.52 and off a high of 78.58.
The pair was likely to find support at 78.30, the low from August 22, and resistance at 79.05, the high from Aug. 15.
The Federal Reserve will likely stimulate the U.S. economy with monetary easing tools if it doesn't recover at a quicker pace, the U.S. central bank revealed in the minutes of its recent monetary policy meeting.
"Many members judged that additional monetary accommodation would likely be warranted fairly soon unless incoming information pointed to a substantial and sustainable strengthening in the pace of the economic recovery," the minutes read.
"Several members noted the benefits of accumulating further information that could help clarify the contours of the outlook for economic activity and inflation as well as the need for further policy action."
The comments sparked a dollar selloff on the notion that the Federal Reserve will announce plans to roll out a new round of quantitative easing soon.
Quantitative easing, under which the Fed buys bonds such as Treasury holdings and mortgage-backed securities from banks, weakens the dollar to spur recovery.
The dollar plunged against the yen earlier though it pared back earlier losses, as both currencies are safe-haven asset classes.
The Fed has rolled out two rounds of quantitative easing since the financial crisis hit in 2008, injecting USD2.3 trillion into the economy by acquiring assets held by banks.
Meanwhile, existing home sales came in weaker than expected, spurring more talk of Federal Reserve intervention.
Sales of previously owned homes rose 2.3% in July to 4.47 million units, the National Association of Realtors reported earlier.
Analysts were expecting the number to hit 4.52 million units, however.
Housing, a primary factor that sent the U.S. economy tumbling into the worst decline since the Great Depression, continues to show signs of bumping along a bottom and refuses to display marked improvement.
The yen was down against the pound and down against the euro, with GBP/JPY up 0.11% and trading at 124.94 and EUR/JPY up 0.13% and trading at 98.59.
Later Thursday, the U.S. will release initial jobless claims, followed by preliminary data on manufacturing activity and official data on new home sales.