Yen Advances As BoJ Lowers Bond Purchases, Asian Shares Weaken

The Japanese yen spiked up against its major opponents in the Asian session on Wednesday, as the Bank of Japan slashed long-term bond purchases, while hawkish comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell and weak China data sent investors scurrying to safe-haven assets.

The BoJ cut the purchases of long-term bonds to 70 billion yen, compared to 80 billion yen it bought at its previous operation.

Powell laid out a case for a faster pace of interest-rate increases, saying that further gradual increases in interest rates would be appropriate to attain objectives of maximum employment and stable consumer prices.

Powell's Congressional testimony was seen as indicating that the Fed may raise interest rates more than the three times currently anticipated.

Traders reacted to weak manufacturing data from China, with the official gauge of manufacturing growth hitting its lowest level in 19 months due to Spring Festival holiday closures. Industrial output, housing starts and retail sales figures from Japan also disappointed investors.

Data from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism showed that Japan's housing starts logged a double-digit decline at the start of the year.

Housing starts decreased 13.2 percent year-on-year in January, faster than the 2.1 percent drop in December and the expected 4.7 percent decrease.

The yen advanced to a 5-day high of 148.69 against the pound, from a low of 149.52 seen at 7:15 pm ET. If the yen rises further, 144.00 is possibly seen as its next resistance level.

The yen climbed to a 5-1/2-month high of 130.81 against the euro and a 2-day high of 113.86 against the Swiss franc, off its early lows of 131.52 and 114.44, respectively. The next possible resistance for the yen is seen around 128.00 against the euro and 112.00 against the Swiss franc.

The yen strengthened to more than an 8-month high of 83.78 against the loonie, after falling to 84.19 at 7:15 pm ET. The yen is likely to find resistance around the 82.00 level.

The yen hovered around near a 3-month high of 77.41 against the kiwi, from an early low of 77.81. Against the aussie, the yen rose to a 5-day high of 83.38, from an early low of 83.81, and held steady thereafter. The yen is seen finding resistance around 75.00 against the kiwi and 82.00 against the aussie.

Reversing from an early low of 107.53 against the greenback, the yen edged up to 107.00. On the upside, 106.00 is seen as the next resistance level for the yen.

Looking ahead, Swiss KOF leading indicator, German jobless rate and Eurozone CPI - all for February are due in the European session.

In the New York session, Canada industrial product price index for January, U.S. GDP data for the fourth quarter and pending home sales for January are scheduled for release.