Yen Higher Amid Virus Concerns

The Japanese yen climbed against its major counterparts in the Asian session on Monday, as weak U.S. retail sales data and growing coronavirus infections sparked worries about an economic rebound across the globe.

COVID-19 cases reached 95 million, while the death toll surpassed 2 million world-wide.

China reported more than 100 new Covid-19 cases for the sixth consecutive day, while the number of hospitalized Covid-19 patients with serious symptoms in Japan topped 970, marking a record high since the onset of the pandemic in the country.

The U.K. government announced that it will close all travel corridors from today in order to restrict the spread of new coronavirus variant cases.

Semi-conductor shares fell after the Trump administration notified several Huawei suppliers that it's revoking their licenses to work with the Chinese firm.

The yen advanced to a 1-week high of 140.65 against the pound, 3-week high of 116.29 against the franc and a 1-1/2-month high of 125.15 against the euro, off its early lows of 141.20, 116.59 and 125.49, respectively. Next key resistance for the yen is seen around 138.00 against the pound, 112.5 against the franc and 120.00 against the euro.

Reversing from its previous lows of 74.14 against the kiwi, 80.07 against the aussie and 81.60 against the loonie, the yen spiked up to a 2-week high of 73.83, near 2-week highs of 79.65 and 81.13, respectively. If the yen rises further, 72.00, 78.00 and 77.00 are likely seen as its next resistance levels against the kiwi, the aussie and the loonie, respectively.

The yen edged up to 103.69 against the greenback, after falling to a 4-day low of 103.93 at 7:00 pm ET. The yen is poised to challenge resistance around the 100.00 level.

Looking ahead, at 8:15 am ET, Canada housing starts for December are scheduled for release.