FX.co ★ Japanese Yen Holds Decline Amid US-China Progress

The Japanese yen hovered around 146 per dollar on Friday, having depreciated by approximately 1.6% in the prior session. This decline was largely due to a reduced demand for safe-haven currencies, as positive developments emerged in US-China trade discussions. In a recent announcement, China indicated its willingness to consider trade negotiations following numerous outreach attempts by the United States to initiate tariff discussions. Concurrently, Japan and the United States wrapped up their second series of bilateral trade talks this week, with Tokyo aiming to finalize a trade agreement by June. Domestically, Japan saw its unemployment rate rise slightly to 2.5% in March, although the labor market continued to show signs of tightness. In separate economic news, the Bank of Japan maintained its policy rate at 0.5% on Thursday and revised its growth and inflation projections downward, suggesting a decreased probability of interest rate hikes in the near future.