Japanese Yen Advances Amid Risk Aversion

The Japanese yen climbed against its major counterparts in the European session on Wednesday, amid a drop in European shares in the wake of renewed tensions between U.S. and China, mixed earnings results and indications of widening of a crackdown from Beijing.

U.S. regulators banned China Telecom's American subsidiary from conducting operations in the country, citing national security risks.

The Federal Communications Commission said that the firm's ownership and control by the Chinese government raises security risks by allowing Beijing "to access, store, disrupt, and/or misroute US communications" and "engage in espionage and other harmful activities against the United States".

Chinese authorities asked Evergrande Group's founder Hui Ka Yan to use his personal wealth to meet the firm's debt obligations.

Traders awaited policy announcements from the European central bank and the Bank of Canada for policy clues in the wake of growing inflationary pressures.

The Bank of Japan will end its two-day meeting on Thursday, with traders expecting it to maintain massive stimulus.

The yen rose to near 2-week highs of 131.58 against the euro, 155.79 against the pound and 91.38 against the loonie, off its early lows of 132.53, 157.27 and 92.20, respectively. The yen is poised to challenge resistance around 130.00 against the euro, 153.00 against the pound and 90.00 against the loonie.

The yen touched 2-day highs of 81.01 against the kiwi, 113.54 against the greenback and 85.05 against the aussie, up from its prior lows of 81.90 and 114.22 and a 6-day low of 86.06, respectively. Next key resistance for the yen is seen around 80.00 against the kiwi, 110.00 against the greenback and 82.00 against the aussie.

The yen reversed from an early low of 124.22 against the franc, with the pair trading at 123.58. If the yen rises further, 120.5 is likely seen as its next resistance level.

Looking ahead, Chancellor Rishi Sunak will present his Autumn Budget at 8:30 am ET.

U.S. durable goods orders and wholesale inventories for September will be out in the New York session.

The Bank of Canada will announce its interest rate decision at 10:00 am ET. The BoC is widely expected to keep its policy rate steady at 0.25 percent.