USD/JPY Price Analysis: Eyes further downside past 144.00 as US NFP, Japan intervention loom

• USD/JPY braces for the first weekly loss in four, prods intraday low.
• Clear downside break of 50-SMA, bearish MACD signals favor Yen pair sellers.
• 100-SMA, two-month-old support line can join downbeat RSI to restrict short-term downside.
• Bulls need validation from US NFP and 144.60 hurdle to retake control.

USD/JPY renews its intraday low around 143.70, down for the second consecutive day, heading into Friday’s European session. In doing so, the Yen pair justifies the market’s positioning for the US employment report for June. Also exerting downside pressure on the price could be the chatters about the Japanese government’s likely intervention to defend the Yen, as well as talks of the Bank of Japan (BoJ) policy moves.

Also read: USD/JPY remains on the defensive around 144.00, downside seems limited ahead of US NFP

Technically, a clear downside break of the 50-SMA, around 144.35 by the press time, joins the bearish MACD signals to favor the USD/JPY sellers.

However, the 100-SMA and an ascending support line from early May, respectively near 143.25 and 143.00, can challenge the Yen pair bears afterward.

It’s worth noting that the RSI (14) also suggests limited downside room for the USD/JPY pair by being closer to the 36.00 level at the latest.

If at all, the USD/JPY drops below 143.00, the 200-SMA and six-week-old horizontal support, respectively near 141.50 and 141.10–140.90, will be crucial to watch.

On the contrary, an upside break of the 50-SMA, near 144.35, isn’t a call for the USD/JPY upside as a one-week-old descending resistance line, near 144.60, acts as an extra filter towards the north before giving control to the bulls.

USD/JPY: Four-hour chart

Trend: Limited downside expected