Yen Falls Ahead Of BoJ Policy Decision

(RTTNews) - The Japanese yen weakened against other major currencies in the European session on Monday, as traders cautiously await the Bank of Japan's final monetary policy meeting of the year later in the week, with the central bank expected to maintain its ultra-dovish stance.

The Bank of Japan (BOJ) began a 2-day meeting today amid speculation it could change its forward guidance on interest rates or provide signals on policy change.

Most economists expect the BOJ to ditch negative interest rates by the end of next year. Upcoming inflation data on Friday also remained on investors' radar.

The safe-haven yen held steady against its major rivals in the Asian session today.

In the European trading now, the yen fell to 155.64 against the euro, 180.90 against the pound and 164.06 against the Swiss franc, from early highs of 154.88, 180.18 and 163.24, respectively. If the yen extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around 163.00 against the euro, 186.00 against the pound and 170.00 against the franc.

Against the U.S. and the Australian dollars, the yen slipped to a 4-day low of 142.55 and a 6-day low of 95.89 from early highs of 142.07 and 95.28, respectively. The yen may test support near 149.00 against the greenback and 98.00 against the aussie.

Against the New Zealand and the Canadian dollars, the yen dropped to 5-day lows of 89.00 and 106.55 from early highs of 88.34 and 106.19, respectively. On the downside, 91.00 against the kiwi and 109.00 against the loonie are seen as the next support levels for the yen.

Looking ahead, Canada housing price index for November and U.S. NAHB housing market index for December are due to be released in the New York session.