Yen Reverses Against Majors

(RTTNews) - The Japanese yen reversed from early gains against other major currencies in the Asian session on Monday, although the Japanese stock market is closed for Children's Day holiday on the day.

The safe-haven currency rose against its major rivals in the last week, following suspected intervention from Japanese authorities to prop up the currency from a sharp slide.

Investors remain cautious amid easing concerns about the outlook for U.S. Fed interest rates after data showed a slowdown in U.S. employment growth in April and U.S. service sector activity unexpectedly contracted in April.

The weak data raised hopes that the Fed will start reducing interest rates during the latter part of the current year. Fed Chair Jerome Powell already signaled to the market that rate hikes are off the table in almost any scenario.

In the Asian trading now, the yen fell to 4-day lows of 165.73 against the euro, 193.18 against the pound and 169.96 against the Swiss franc, from Friday's closing quotes of 164.71, 192.04 and 169.10, respectively. If the yen extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 171.00 against the euro, 201.00 against the pound and 175.00 against the franc.

Against the U.S., the Australia, the New Zealand and the Canadian dollars, the yen slipped to 4-day lows of 159.97, 101.84, 92.41 and 112.52 from last week's closing quotes of 152.98, 101.09, 92.01 and 111.76, respectively. The greenback may test support near 160.00 against the greenback, 105.00 against the aussie, 95.00 against the kiwi and 117.00 against the loonie.

Looking ahead, service PMI reports from various European economies for April and Eurozone PPI for March are due to be released in the European session.

In the New York session, Canada hourly wages data for April, U.S. CB employment trends index for April and U.S. loan officers survey data are slated to be released.