Japanese Yen Extends Decline After BoJ Decision

The Japanese yen continued to be lower against its most major counterparts in the European session on Friday, after the Bank of Japan maintained its accommodative stance on monetary policy and reiterated that its interest rates would remain unchanged for the foreseeable future due to the uncertainty about the impact of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

The policy board, governed by Haruhiko Kuroda, on Tuesday, voted 8-1, to hold the interest rate at -0.1 percent on current accounts that financial institutions maintain at the central bank.

The bank will continue to purchase a necessary amount of Japanese government bonds without setting an upper limit so that 10-year JGB yields will remain at around zero percent.

Japan's economy has picked up as a trend, the bank said. Inflation is likely to increase clearly in positive territory for the time being due to a significant rise in energy prices, the BoJ said.

The bank noted that in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, global financial and capital markets have been volatile and prices of commodities such as crude oil have risen significantly, and future developments warrant attention.

Data from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications showed that Japan consumer prices rose 0.9 percent on year in February.

That exceeded forecasts for an increase of 0.7 percent and accelerated from 0.5 percent in January.

The currency has been trading in a negative territory against its key counterparts in the Asian session.

The yen weakened to 127.31 against the franc, a level unseen since August 2015. If the currency falls further, 131.00 is likely seen as its next support level.

The yen fell to 119.01 against the greenback and 156.55 against the pound, down from its early highs of 118.47 and 155.86, respectively. The currency may test support around 121.5 against the greenback and 159.00 against the pound.

The yen dipped to its lowest level since September 2015 against the loonie, at 94.41. Against the kiwi, it was down at a 4-1/2-month low of 82.10. Should the yen falls further, 96.00 and 84.00 may be seen as its next support levels against the loonie and the kiwi, respectively.

The yen was lower against the aussie, at more than a 4-year low of 88.06. On the downside, 90.00 is possibly seen as its next support level.

In contrast, the yen rebounded to 131.35 against the euro, after falling to 131.90 at 8:15 pm ET. At yesterday's close, the pair was worth 131.52. The currency is seen finding resistance around the 127.5 region.

Looking ahead, U.S. existing home sales for February, Canada retail sales for January and new housing price index for February will be published in the New York session.