Investing.com - The dollar took back losses against the yen on Thursday, coming off earlier lows stemming from dovish Fed minutes and upbeat Japanese factory data, as better-than-expected weekly jobless claims in the U.S. supported the U.S. currency.
In U.S. trading, USD/JPY was up 0.06% at 108.13, up from a session low of 107.53 and off a high of 108.32.
The pair was expected to test support at 106.79, the low from Sept. 16, and resistance at 109.92, last Friday's high.
The U.S. Department of Labor reported earlier that the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending Oct. 4 fell by 1,000 to 287,000 from the previous week’s revised total of 288,000.
Analysts had expected jobless claims to rise by 6,000 to 294,000 last week, and the numbers brought the greenback into positive territory after dovish language from the Federal Reserve softened the U.S. currency earlier.
The dollar slipped on Wednesday after the minutes of the Fed's Sept. 16-17 policy meeting revealed that a number of monetary authorities believe the bank's current language painted the wrong picture on the timing of rate hikes and that an interest rate rise should be tied to U.S. economic recovery.
The minutes also showed that the U.S. central bank cut its growth outlook due to a stronger dollar and concerns over global weakness.
Meanwhile in Japan, government data on Thursday revealed that Japan's core machinery orders rose 4.7% in August, more than an expected 1.1% increase, after a 3.5% gain in July, which strengthened the yen earlier.
The yen, meanwhile, was up against the euro and up against the pound, with EUR/JPY down 0.33% at 137.17, and GBP/JPY trading down 0.18% at 174.41.
On Friday, the Bank of Japan is to publish the minutes of its latest policy meeting, which contain valuable insights into economic conditions from the bank’s perspective. Japan is also to release data on tertiary industry activity.
The U.S. is to round up the week with data on import prices.