USD/JPY spikes to fresh daily top, retakes 150.00 mark after BoJ policy decision

• USD/JPY attracts fresh buying on Tuesday and draws support from a combination of factors.
• Hawkish Fed expectations, along with elevated US bond yields, help revive the USD demand.
• The JPY weakens after the BoJ changed the language around YCC and maintained ultra-low rates.

The USD/JPY pair regains positive traction during the Asian session on Tuesday and snaps a two-day losing streak to the 148.80 area, or a two-week low touched the previous day. The buying interest picks up pace after the Bank of Japan (BoJ) announced its policy decision, pushing spot prices to the 150.00 psychological mark, or a fresh daily high in the last hour.

The Japanese central bank refrained from altering its yield curve control (YCC) policy, though changed language around the target range for the benchmark 10-year yield. The BoJ decides to keep the yield target but make 1% a reference cap. The move comes on the back of pressure from a sell-off in bond markets through October, which had lifted the yield on the 10-year JGB to a 10-year peak earlier this Tuesday. The BoJ, however, maintained its ultra-low interest rates despite an uptick in Japanese inflation. This continues to weigh on the Japanese Yen (JPY) and lends support to the USD/JPY pair.

The US Dollar (USD), on the other hand, attracts some dip-buying and recovers a part of the overnight slide amid elevated US Treasury bond yields, bolstered by expectations that the Federal Reserve (Fed) will stick to its hawkish stance. In fact, the markets seem convinced that the US central bank will tighten its monetary policy further in the wake of the resilient economy and still sticky inflation. This, in turn, suggests that the path of least resistance for the USD/JPY pair is to the upside, though bulls might wait for BoJ Governor Kazuo Ueda's post-meeting presser before placing fresh bets.

The market attention will then turn to the US economic docket, featuring the release of the Chicago PMI and the Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index, due later during the early North American session. The focus, however, will remain glued to the outcome of the highly-anticipated two-day FOMC monetary policy meeting, scheduled to be announced on Wednesday. Investors will look for cues about the Fed's future rate-hike path, which will play a key role in influencing the near-term USD price dynamics and help determine the next leg of a directional move for the USD/JPY pair.

Technical levels to watch