USD/JPY spikes to 111.00 neighborhood after US weekly jobless claims

The USD/JPY pair built on to its recovery momentum from session low and spiked closer to the 111.00 handle following the release of US weekly jobless claims.

According to the data released, just a while ago, the US initial jobless claims for the week ended March 31 fell more-than-expected to 234K (250K expected) from previous week’s 258K. 

The data provided a minor lift to the greenback, with the key US Dollar Index now placed near session high around 100.60 region and helped the pair to refresh daily tops.

Meanwhile, the ongoing recovery move in the European equity indices further dented demand for the traditional safe-haven Japanese Yen and has been collaborating to the pair’s recovery from session low.

Investors on Thursday will remains focused on any news coming out of a crucial meeting between the US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, which would eventually derive safe-haven demand and provide some fresh impetus for the major. 

Technical levels to watch

Sustained momentum above the 111.00 handle has the potential to lift the pair back towards 111.35-40 resistance (yesterday's high), above which a fresh bout of short-covering could extend the recovery move further towards 111.85 level.

On the flip side, retracement back below mid-110.00s is likely to accelerate the slide back towards weekly lows support near 110.30-25 area, which if broken now seems to pave way for continuation of the pair's near-term downward trajectory towards 109.75-70 support zone.