The pair is likely to maintain a firm undertone today in Asia as risk sentiment improved on emerging optimism about the outlook for corporate profits. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index snapped a second straight trading day of losses, up 0.20% on Wednesday after Alcoa announced the better-than-expected fourth-quarter results. The yen will also come under pressure after Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Wednesday officially requested the Bank of Japan to adopt a 2% inflation target at the first meeting of Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy. “The prime minister asked BOJ Governor (Masaaki Shirakawa) to adopt a 2% inflation goal as part of an overall policy of ending deflation,” Economy Minister Akira Amari said after the meeting. The BOJ will hold the next policy board meeting on Jan. 21 and 22, while the government the government is expected to approve pump-priming measures on Friday. The rate moved from Y86.83 to Y88.02 on Wednesday.
EasyForexNews Research Team