Yen Advances As BoJ Kuroda Nominated For Second Term

The Japanese yen firmed against its major opponents in the Asian session on Friday, as investors cheered Haruhiko Kuroda's nomination for another term as Bank of Japan Governor. The Japanese government submitted the proposal to a parliamentary committee today. 

The government also sent nominations for Masayoshi Amamiya and Waseda University professor Masazumi Wakatabe as deputy governors. Amamiya, executive director of BoJ, has worked with Kuroda in designing stimulus policies. The nominations require approval by both houses of parliament. Kuroda's reappointment indicates that the bank is set to maintain its aggressive monetary policy stimulus. Meanwhile, Asian shares were higher, extending gains from the previous session, as crude oil prices rallied and U.S. stocks extended their winning streak to five sessions overnight as investors largely shrugged off indications of rising inflation. 

The currency was trading higher against its major rivals on Thursday, with the exception of the franc. The Japanese yen climbed to 105.55 against the greenback, a level unseen since November 2016. If the yen extends rise, 104.00 is seen as its next resistance level. The yen edged up to 149.20 against the pound and 114.81 against the Swiss franc, off its early lows of 149.96 and 115.30, respectively. The next possible resistance for the yen is seen around 147.00 against the pound and 112.00 against the Swiss franc. The yen advanced to a 2-day high of 132.40 against the euro, after having fallen to 133.10 at 10:45 pm ET. 

On the upside, 131.00 is likely seen as the next resistance for the yen. The yen reversed from its early low of 85.17 against the loonie, rising to a 2-day high of 84.69. The yen is seen finding resistance around the 82.5 level. The yen advanced to 84.07 against the aussie and a session's high of 78.33 against the kiwi, reversing from its early lows of 84.49 and 78.72, respectively. Further uptrend for the yen is likely to see it finding resistance around 82.00 against the aussie and 76.00 against the kiwi. 

Looking ahead, at 2:00 am ET, German wholesale price index for January is set for release. In the European session, U.K. retail sales for January are set for release. U.S. housing starts, building permits and import price index for January and University of Michigan's preliminary consumer sentiment for February as well as Canada manufacturing sales for December will be out in the New York session.