Tuesday in Asia, the yen soared to multi-day highs against its major counterparts on speculation the Bank of Japan may take further monetary easing steps.
The Bank of Japan began its two-day monetary policy meeting today and will announce its decision on interest rates tomorrow. Analysts expect the central bank to retain its rate at 0.1%. However, investors continued to be optimistic about further monetary easing steps and were heartened by the government's upbeat outlook of the Japanese economy.
Today, the Japanese government upgraded its economic assessment for the first time in eight months. The Cabinet Office in its Monthly Economic Report said, "Although the economy has been picking up steadily, it is only weakly self-sustaining and remains in a difficult situation such as a high unemployment rate." The government added the word "steadily" in its March report.
The yen that closed yesterday's trading at 90.55 against the US dollar rose to a 6-day high of 90.05 in Asian deals on Tuesday. The next upside target level for the yen is seen at 89.6. The dollar-yen pair is currently worth 90.08.
During Asian deals on Tuesday, the yen strengthened to a 5-day high of 135.61 against the pound. On the upside, 134.0 is seen as the next target level for the Japanese currency. The pound-yen pair that closed yesterday's trading at 136.34 is presently worth 135.67.
The yen climbed against the currencies of Europe and Switzerland during early Asian deals on Tuesday. At 9:10 pm ET, the yen reached a 4-day high of 84.93 against the franc and 123.25 against the euro. Although the yen eased thereafter, it rebounded shortly and is currently worth 123.38 against the euro and 85.03 against the franc, compared to Monday's close of 123.82 and 85.28, respectively. If the yen advances further, it may target 84.3 against the franc and 123.0 against the euro.
The CPI reports from France, Italy and the Euro-zone for February, U.K. January DCLG house price index and the German ZEW economic sentiment report for March have been slated for release in the upcoming European session.
The U.S. housing starts and building permits, import and export price indexes- all for the month of February are expected in the New York morning.
The interest-rate setting committee of the Federal Reserve holds a one-day meeting today in which the central bank is widely expected to repeat its promise to keep borrowing costs exceptionally low for "an extended period". The Fed is due to announce its decision at 2:15 pm ET.
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June 05, 2026 16:18 ET A busy week for economic news flow saw a slew of reports being released that reflected the trends in the U.S. labor market. In Europe, economic growth and inflation data gained attention as the European Central Bank and Bank of England head for policy session later in the month. In Asia, the monetary policy session of the Indian central bank was in focus as the country, a major oil importer, reels under the pressures of a weaker rupee and rising inflation.