Yen Extends Slide As Sentiment Improves On Oil Price Rebound
December 22 2014 - 4:28AM
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The Japanese yen extended its decline against its major rivals
in early European deals on Monday, as a rebound in oil prices
supported investor sentiment.
Brent crude futures rose above $62 a barrel in Asian deals after
Saudi Oil Minister Ali Al-Naimi on Sunday said at the 10th Arab
Energy Conference in Abu Dhabi that he's confident the oil market
will recover and fossil fuel will remain the main source of energy
for decades to come.
Blaming the recent fall in oil prices on speculators, he pledged
that Saudi Arabia, the world's largest oil producer, would not cut
production to prop up prices even if non-OPEC nations cut
output.
Most Asian stocks are trading higher, tracking gains on Wall
Street Friday and on bounce in oil prices.
The Bank of Japan on Friday maintained the annual pace of
increase in the monetary base at about JPY 80 trillion. Governor
Haruhiko Kuroda voiced confidence the bank will meet its inflation
target despite a recent plunge in oil prices.
In its Monthly Report on Recent Economic and Financial
Developments, the Bank of Japan noted that Japan's economy has
continued to recover moderately as a trend as the effects of the
decline in demand following the sales tax hike have been waning on
the whole.
The bank raised its assessment of exports and industrial
production.
The yen slipped to 119.88 against the greenback, its lowest
since December 10. At last week's close, the pair was quoted at
119.46. The next possible support for the yen is seen around the
121.5 zone.
The yen also dropped to a 6-day low of 147.02 against the euro,
4-day low of 122.15 against the franc and near a 2-week low of
187.53 against the pound. The yen ended Friday's trading at 146.10
against the euro, 121.37 against the franc and 186.64 against the
pound. Next key support for the yen may be found around 148.00
against the euro, 124.00 against the franc and 190.00 against the
pound.
The yen reversed from early high of 97.08 against the aussie and
a 4-day high of 92.07 against the kiwi, sliding to 97.67 and 92.85,
respectively. The yen is likely to find support around 98.8 against
the aussie and 93.6 against the kiwi.
The yen hit 103.47 against the loonie for the first time since
December 11. The loonie-yen pair traded at 102.91 at last week's
close. Further weakness may take the yen to a support of around the
104.00 area.
Looking ahead, Eurozone flash consumer sentiment index for
December and U.S. existing home sales for November are due in the
New York session.
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