The Japanese yen against the US Dollar started declining. The current quote is 132.13.
Morning reports demonstrated that household spending in Japan in December has dropped by 1.3% y/y, while a month before it had dropped by 1.2%. Meanwhile, the forecasts were quite optimistic, suggesting a decline by 0.3% y/y. These statistics are leading and give base for expecting a decline in inflation.
Meanwhile, signals from the employment market turned out positive. Average wages in December grew by 4.8% y/y upon expanding by 1.9% y/y. The forecast had suggested growth by 2.5%.
The leading indicators index in December dropped to 97.2% from 97.4%.
The JPY is now affected by the strength of the dollar.