Yen Slides Against Majors

(RTTNews) - The Japanese yen weakened against other major currencies in the Asian session on Monday, as investors are still concerned that the Middle East crisis and ongoing disruptions to the Strait of Hormuz energy supply would continue to put pressure on Japan's economy.

Investors remain cautious amid renewed uncertainty about the peace deal to end the Middle East war after US President Donald Trump threatened fresh strikes if Hezbollah continues its attacks on Israel, while Tehran announced the closure of the Strait of Hormuz again.

Iran is said to have also suspended the negotiations in response to Trump's remarks, although reports suggest that the talks were still underway.

Satsuki Katayama, Japan's finance minister, reaffirmed today that authorities are prepared to react correctly to currency fluctuations whenever necessary.

In the meantime, some board members demanded that rates be raised more quickly in order to prevent underlying inflation from overshooting, according to the minutes of the April BoJ meeting.

Additionally, BoJ Deputy Governor Himino stated that the central bank will continue to raise rates in response to financial, pricing, and economic trends.

In the Asian trading today, the yen fell to 4-day lows of 185.33 against the euro, 213.73 against the pound and 161.77 against the U.S. dollar, from Friday's closing quotes of 185.01, 213.47 and 161.31, respectively. If the yen extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 186.00 against the euro, 216.00 against the pound and 163.00 against the greenback.

Against the Swiss franc and the Canadian dollars, the yen edged down to 200.19 and 114.10 from last week's closing quotes of 199.87 and 113.96, respectively. The yen may test support around 202.00 against the franc and 115.00 against the loonie.

Looking ahead, Canada CPI data for May and Eurozone flash consumer confidence for June are slated for release in the New York session.