Forexpros – The U.S. dollar was down against the yen on Wednesday, hovering close to a two-week low as sustained worries over debt contagion in the euro zone supported safe haven demand.
USD/JPY hit 76.94 during early European trade, the daily low; the pair subsequently consolidated at 76.97, edging down 0.07%.
The pair was likely to find support at 76.65, the low of October 19 and resistance at 77.45, the high of October 17.
Concerns over the deepening debt crisis in the euro zone grew after French 10-year bond yields rose to euro-era highs on Tuesday while Italian 10-year bond yields rose to near unsustainable levels, climbing above 7%.
Italian Prime Minister-designate Mario Monti was to meet with President Giorgio Napolitano, later Wednesday to officially accept the post and possibly present his ministers.
Earlier Wednesday, the Bank of Japan left interest rates unchanged, close to zero.
In a press conference, the BoJ cut its economic assessment as Governor Masaaki Shirakawa deemed the euro zone debt crisis the biggest danger for the nation’s export-led recovery.
The bank also said that it may implement new stimulus measures if the yen resumes its strong gains after climbing to postwar highs against the greenback last month.
The yen was also higher against the euro with EUR/JPY declining 0.30%, to hit 103.98.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to release official data on consumer price inflation and industrial production.
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