GBP/JPY ticks down to near 200.00, investor await Tokyo CPI data
- GBP/JPY falls marginally to near 200.00 after the release of BOJ policy minutes of the July meeting.
- BoJ minutes showed that officials are confident about tightening the monetary policy further in the near term.
- BoE’s Greene warns of upside inflation risks and urges caution on interest rate cuts.
The GBP/JPY pair edges lower to near 200.00 during the late Asian trading session on Thursday. The pair ticks down as the Japanese Yen (JPY) trades higher, following the release of the Bank of Japan (BoJ) Monetary Policy minutes of the July meeting released earlier in the day.
BoJ minutes signaled growing acceptance among policymakers towards raising interest rates further as inflation in Japan remains higher and the United States (US)-Japan trade deal has reduced uncertainty.
Japanese Yen Price Today
The table below shows the percentage change of Japanese Yen (JPY) against listed major currencies today. Japanese Yen was the strongest against the New Zealand Dollar.
| USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USD | -0.05% | -0.06% | -0.09% | -0.03% | -0.15% | -0.10% | -0.03% | |
| EUR | 0.05% | -0.03% | -0.07% | 0.01% | -0.07% | -0.06% | 0.02% | |
| GBP | 0.06% | 0.03% | -0.02% | 0.04% | -0.08% | -0.01% | 0.08% | |
| JPY | 0.09% | 0.07% | 0.02% | 0.04% | -0.07% | 0.16% | 0.08% | |
| CAD | 0.03% | -0.01% | -0.04% | -0.04% | -0.09% | -0.06% | 0.04% | |
| AUD | 0.15% | 0.07% | 0.08% | 0.07% | 0.09% | 0.33% | 0.11% | |
| NZD | 0.10% | 0.06% | 0.01% | -0.16% | 0.06% | -0.33% | -0.17% | |
| CHF | 0.03% | -0.02% | -0.08% | -0.08% | -0.04% | -0.11% | 0.17% |
The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the Japanese Yen from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the US Dollar, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent JPY (base)/USD (quote).
Last week, the BoJ held interest rates steady at 0.5% and kept the door open for further monetary policy tightening.
Going forward, investors will focus on the Tokyo Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for September, which will be published on Friday. Tokyo CPI ex. Fresh Food is expected to have grown at an annual pace of 2.8%, faster than 2.5% in August.
Signs of price pressures accelerating would prompt speculation for an interest rate hike by the BoJ in the near term.
Meanwhile, the Pound Sterling (GBP) trades broadly calm as investors look for fresh cues about whether the Bank of England (BoE) will cut interest rates further this year. According to Reuters, the BoE will hold borrowing rates steady in the remainder of the year.
On Wednesday, BoE Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) member Megan Greene stated that the central bank needs to exercise caution on interest rate cuts as “risks to our inflation outlook have shifted to the upside”, Reuters reported.
Japanese Yen FAQs
The Japanese Yen (JPY) is one of the world’s most traded currencies. Its value is broadly determined by the performance of the Japanese economy, but more specifically by the Bank of Japan’s policy, the differential between Japanese and US bond yields, or risk sentiment among traders, among other factors.
One of the Bank of Japan’s mandates is currency control, so its moves are key for the Yen. The BoJ has directly intervened in currency markets sometimes, generally to lower the value of the Yen, although it refrains from doing it often due to political concerns of its main trading partners. The BoJ ultra-loose monetary policy between 2013 and 2024 caused the Yen to depreciate against its main currency peers due to an increasing policy divergence between the Bank of Japan and other main central banks. More recently, the gradually unwinding of this ultra-loose policy has given some support to the Yen.
Over the last decade, the BoJ’s stance of sticking to ultra-loose monetary policy has led to a widening policy divergence with other central banks, particularly with the US Federal Reserve. This supported a widening of the differential between the 10-year US and Japanese bonds, which favored the US Dollar against the Japanese Yen. The BoJ decision in 2024 to gradually abandon the ultra-loose policy, coupled with interest-rate cuts in other major central banks, is narrowing this differential.
The Japanese Yen is often seen as a safe-haven investment. This means that in times of market stress, investors are more likely to put their money in the Japanese currency due to its supposed reliability and stability. Turbulent times are likely to strengthen the Yen’s value against other currencies seen as more risky to invest in.
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