The pair opened at Y101.84 this morning after recovering off a 1-week low at Y101.64 last night in the US and was initially held in a slightly higher Y101.68 to Y101.89 range in early dealings. It got up the morning high early in the session but ran into sellers after the release of Japanese retail sales data. Comments from BOJ board member Sayuri Shirai also contributed to broader yen gains and dollar-yen extended the lows to Y101.64 around mid-morning. It saw another rebound later in the morning but couldn’t get past Y101.73. The pair then consolidated within that Y101.64 to Y101.73 range, andwas last at Y101.71. The Y102.14 level is seen as key resistance for the pair with the 55-day moving average also coming in near that level, at Y102.17. A close above that wouldrelieve the current bearish focus that has bears targeting a break lower that retests the 200-day (Y101.39). Stops are noted below Y101.50 and above Y102.20.
