Forexpros – The U.S. dollar was higher against the yen on Thursday, but came under some pressure after the release of mixed U.S. data prompted investors to speculate whether the Federal Reserve will announce fresh stimulus measures.
USD/JPY hit 79.41 during European afternoon change, the pair’s highest since July 12; the pair subsequently consolidated at 79.24, rising 0.32%.
The pair was likely to find support at 78.90, the day’s low and resistance at 79.78, the high of July 11.
The Department of Labor said the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending August 11 rose by 2,000 to a seasonally adjusted 366,000, compared to expectations for an increase of 1,000 to 365,000.
The previous week’s figure was revised up to 364,000 from a previously reported 361,000.
Separately, official data showed that U.S. housing starts fell by 1.1% in July to a seasonally adjusted 0.746 million, compared to expectations for a decline of 0.5% to 0.757 million.
Housing starts for June were revised down to 0.754 million units from a previously reported 0.760 million units, which was the highest since October 2008.
The report also showed that the number of building permits issued in July rose 6.8% to a seasonally adjusted 0.812 million, compared to expectations for an increase of 1.2% to 0.770 million.
Investors were still eyeing a U.S. report on manufacturing activity, expected later in the day, for further indications on the strength of the country’s economic recovery.
Meanwhile, the yen remained under broad selling pressure amid sustained expectations for additional easing measures by the Bank of Japan in the near future.
The yen was also lower against the euro with EUR/JPY climbing 0.59%, to hit 97.65.
Later in the day, the U.S. was to publish data on manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia area.
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