USD/JPY: Yen Eyes Sixth Losing Day in a Row as Dollar Breaks 50-Day MA to Slip Under ¥145.00

Japan’s yen hasn’t been traders’ favorite currency over the past week. The dollar, however, is seen gaining traction across the board.

🚨 Yen Eyes Sixth Straight Drop

• The USDJPY pair is on pace for its sixth consecutive losing session, slipping as the US dollar pushes below the ¥145.00 handle to a session low of ¥144.30.
• Against a fickle macro backdrop in Japan, the dollar is flexing globally, propped up by broader risk appetite and a credit downgrade shrug-off.
• The dollar-yen dipped below its 50-day moving average — the third and final big line to be crossed to the downside after the 100-day and the 200-day lines are already in the rearview.

💡 Rate Hikes from Bank of Japan?

• Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Shinichi Uchida told lawmakers Monday that Japan’s central bank is ready to keep raising rates if the economy rebounds from the hit of US tariffs.
• “If our forecast materializes, we will continue to raise our policy rate,” Uchida said, highlighting that inflation should, in theory, remain floating around the 2% target.
• The central banker also acknowledged price hikes are weighing on consumers and household spending — which could complicate future tightening efforts. Higher rates make borrowing more expensive — this is what they are designed to do to bring down inflation.

🔎 Japan’s Economy Contracts

• Quick catch-up: Japan’s GDP shrank by 0.2% in the March quarter — worse than the 0.1% decline expected by economists, marking the first quarterly contraction in a year.
• The hit came largely from exports, which fell 0.6% on a quarterly basis, trimming 0.8 percentage points off Japan’s GDP amid uncertainty from Trump’s back-and-forth tariff moves.
• Domestic demand was a rare bright spot, rising 0.6% and contributing positively to the overall print — but not enough to offset export weakness.

👀 What’s Next for Dollar-Yen?

• As the yen remains vulnerable and the Bank of Japan weighs its next move, traders are watching the ¥145.00 level closely. A sustained break below might open the door for a new leg down — unless the dollar trips over some unexpected tariff news.
• Long-term support currently sits at ¥139.80 to ¥140.00. All eyes now turn to the next round of US-Japan trade talks… and any new surprises from the Bank of Japan.
• As for today, and the rest of the week, Tuesday is shaping up as a quiet day for forex markets with no big news waiting for release. Instead, it’s charts time! Technical bros — this one’s for you: time for your pattern-hunting activities to take it away.