Yen Falls Amid BoJ Rate Hike Uncertainty

(RTTNews) - The Japanese yen weakened against other major currencies in the European session on Tuesday, as traders speculate uncertainty about the Bank of Japan's (BoJ) rate hike in December.

According to some reports, the BoJ is likely to skip raising interest rates this month.

The BoJ board member Toyoaki Nakamura said that the central bank must move cautiously in raising rates, adding a layer of uncertainty and undermining the Japanese Yen.

Markets in the region react positively to China's announcement of more proactive fiscal measures and a moderately looser monetary policy that bodes well for the nations flattering economy. However, the escalating conflict in the Middle East is weighing on market sentiment.

Also, focus shifted to upcoming U.S. CPI data and the ECB policy meeting.

The European Central Bank's (ECB) monetary policy decision is due on Thursday, with the central bank expected to cut interest rates by 25 bps for the third time in a row.

While the U.S. Fed is widely expected to lower rates by another 25 basis points next week, there is some uncertainty about whether the central bank will continue cutting rates next year.

Traders currently price in an 87% chance of a 25-basis-point interest rate cut at next week's Fed meeting, up from 61.6% last week, according to the CME Group's FedWatch Tool.

In economic news, data from the Bank of Japan showed that the M2 money stock in Japan was up 1.2 percent on year in November, standing at 1,255.0 trillion yen. That was in line with expectations and unchanged from the previous two months.

Data from the Japan Machine Tool Builders Association, or JMTBA, showed that the Japan's machine tool orders increased for the second straight month in November. Machine tool orders climbed 3.0 percent year-on-year in November, though much slower than the 9.4 percent sharp recovery in the previous month.

On a monthly basis, machine tool orders declined 2.6 percent in November, extending the 2.2 percent fall in the prior month.

The safe-haven yen traded slightly higher against its major rivals in the Asian trading today.

In the European trading today, the yen fell to near 2-week lows of 160.07 against the euro, 151.79 against the U.S. dollar and 172.64 against the Swiss franc, from early highs of 159.38, 150.90 and 171.99, respectively. If the yen extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 163.00 against the euro, 155.00 against the greenback and 175.00 against the franc.

Against the pound, the yen edged down to 193.41 from an early high of 192.46. The yen may test support near the 197.00 region.

Looking ahead, U.S. NFIB business optimism index for November and U.S. Redbook report are due to be released in the New York session.