On Thursday, the Japanese yen was sharply lower, and USD/JPY traded at about 149.02, up 1.1% for the day in the North American session.
In the second quarter, Japan’s economy rose 3.1% y/y, an impressive turnaround from the revised decline of 2.3% in the first quarter and higher than the market estimate of 2.1%. This was the strongest yearly expansion since the second quarter of last year, driven by hefty private consumption after strong wage gains due to a wage deal in the spring.
The yen has been sharp lately and in July gained a massive 6.7% and last week strengthened to 141.68, its best showing since January. On Thursday, the US dollar fought back, bolstered by a strong US retail sales report which pushed USD/JPY 1.1% higher.
In July, retail sales rose 1% m/m, sharply higher than the revised -0.2% and higher than the market estimate of 0.3%. Unemployment claims were higher than expected at 227K, lower than the prior revised 237K and lower than the market estimate of 235K.
The stronger-than-expected unemployment and consumer spending data supports a modest 0.25% cut from the Federal Reserve in Sept. The rout in the global markets last week increased expectations of a huge 0.5% cut in response to fears of the US economy deterioration.
