Forexpros – The U.S. dollar gained ground against the Japanese yen in Asian trade Thursday, following better than expected U.S. factory orders for July and overnight gains on Wall Street.
In mid-day Asian trade USD/JPY hit 76.43, the pair’s lowest since last Wednesday; the pair subsequently consolidated at 77.13, advancing 0.59%.
The pair was likely to find support at 76.43, the day’s low, and resistance at 77.70, last Thursday’s high.
The U.S. Census Bureau on Wednesday reported that factory orders jumped 2.4% in July, far exceeding economist’s forecasts of a 1% increase. That followed a 0.4% decline in June.
News on the U.S. labor front was less encouraging, as a separate report from payroll processing firm ADP revealed that non-farm private employment in the U.S. rose less than expected to a seasonally adjusted 91,000 in August.
The August figure follows a 109,000 gain in July and fell short of market expectations of an increase to 103,000.
Shares on Wall Street posted gains for the fourth straight day, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average adding 0.46%, the Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 0.13%, and the S&P 500 was lifted 0.49%.
Earlier, Japan’s industrial production showed a 0.6% rise in July, from 3.8% in the previous month. Expectations were for a 1.6% gain in July.
Meanwhile, the yen moved lower against both the euro and the British pound with EUR/JPY up 0.45% to hit 110.67, and GBP/JPY rising 0.36% to hit 124.99
Weekly initial jobless claims data from the U.S. Department of Labor, as well as the Institute of Supply Management’s Manufacturing Index were due out later Thursday.
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