The Japanese yen was down today as Japan’s economic growth missed estimates and the risk-positive sentiment of Forex traders made the currency unnecessary in its role as a safe haven.
According to the second estimate, Japanese gross domestic product expanded 0.3 percent in the third quarter of this year. It was below analysts’ expectations and the previous official estimate of 0.5 percent. The current account posted a deficit in October, while economists hoped for a surplus.
The data spurred talks that the Bank of Japan will not be able to reach its inflation target at the predetermined time and will be forced to add monetary stimulus. Such speculations followed the speech of BoJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda, who said that “exiting from … prolonged monetary easing would not be easy”.
USD/JPY rose from 102.98 to 103.23 as of 19:18 GMT today. EUR/JPY advanced from 141.26 to 141.80 and GBP/JPY climbed from 168.36 to 169.52.
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