GBP/JPY looking for support from 181.40 as Sterling falls back, Yen gains

GBP/JPY down 0.70% in Monday trading as Pound Sterling recedes.
Risk aversion market flows are sending investors into safe havens.
Market concerns about an economic slowdown continue to sap market confidence.

Joshua Gibson FXStreet

The GBP/JPY has declined 125 from Monday's peak near 182.25 as the Pound Sterling (GBP) swoons against the safer Japanese Yen (JPY). Broader market sentiment has soured to kick off the new trading week, and early gains are giving way to deepening red as Monday rounds the corner into Tuesday's Asia market session.

The Pound Sterling is broadly expected to suffer with an overly cautious Bank of England (BoE) at the helm; an unexpected rate hike pause from the UK's central bank, coupled with incredibly dovish language from various BoE officials, exposes the GBP to the downside unless inflation returns in a meaningfully-enough way to jumpstart the BoE's rate hike decision-making.

Traders hoping for inspiration from the economic calendar are in for a disappointing trading week, with little of note on the data docket for either currency.

Japan's Tankan Manufacturing Index & Outlook figures for the third quarter exceeded expectations on Monday. The Tankan Manufacturing Index printed at a solid 9, well above the forecast 6 and easily beating the previous print of 5.

The Tankan Manufacturing Outlook also beat the books, climbing from the previous 9 to print at a nice round 10, handily wiping out the market forecast of 5.

The only remaining notable data for the week will be Thursday's wage figures from Japan, due at 23:30 GMT.

GBP/JPY technical outlook

The Guppy's backslide from Friday's peak near 182.80 is seeing hourly candles bounce from a near-term raising trendline marked in from last week's swing low into 180.90, and bidders will be looking to gain enough momentum to make a break for the 200-hour Simple Moving Average (SMA) near 181.90.

The downside is starting to open up wide, and short-side pressure is mounting to take the GBP/JPY into September's lows near 180.80.

On the daily candlesticks, the GBP/JPY continues to lose its nerve, waffling from August's swing high above 186.00 to trade on the bearish side of the 34-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA) currently settling into the 183.00 handle.

With technical support coming from the 100-day SMA just south of the 181.00 handle, GBP traders will have their work cut out for them if they're going to halt a long-term decline to the 200-day SMA far below current price action at 172.00.

GBP/JPY hourly chart

GBP/JPY daily chart

GBP/JPY technical levels

GBP/JPY

Overview
Today last price	181.58
Today Daily Change	-0.64
Today Daily Change %	-0.35
Today daily open	182.22

Trends
Daily SMA20	183.09
Daily SMA50	183.33
Daily SMA100	180.68
Daily SMA200	171.74

Levels
Previous Daily High	183.03
Previous Daily Low	181.89
Previous Weekly High	183.03
Previous Weekly Low	180.89
Previous Monthly High	185.78
Previous Monthly Low	180.82
Daily Fibonacci 38.2%	182.59
Daily Fibonacci 61.8%	182.32
Daily Pivot Point S1	181.73
Daily Pivot Point S2	181.24
Daily Pivot Point S3	180.6
Daily Pivot Point R1	182.87
Daily Pivot Point R2	183.52
Daily Pivot Point R3	184

Author

Joshua Gibson

FXStreet

Joshua joins the FXStreet team as an Economics and Finance double major from Vancouver Island University with twelve years' experience as an independent trader focusing on technical analysis.

EUR/USD stays well offered below 1.1800

The selling pressure on EUR/USD is picking up pace, with the pair slipping decisively below the key 1.1800 level and sliding to fresh two week lows as Wednesday’s session draws to a close. The move lower comes as the US Dollar finds renewed strength after the latest round of US data and the release of the FOMC Minutes. Next of note on the docket will be the US weekly Initial Jobless Claims.

GBP/USD reaches multi-day lows near 1.3500

GBP/USD reverses its initial upside momentum and is now adding to previous declines, approaching the 1.3500 region on Wednesday. Cable’s downtick comes on the back of decent gains in the Greenback and easing UK inflation figures, which seem to have reinforced the case for a BoE rate cut in March.

Gold battle to regain $5,000 continues

Gold is back on the front foot on Wednesday, shaking off part of the early week softness and challenging two-day highs near the $5,000 mark per troy ounce. The move comes ahead of the FOMC Minutes and is unfolding despite an intense rebound in the US Dollar.

Bitcoin has found or is near a bottom, extended consolidation to follow: K33

Bitcoin (BTC) is nearing or has already established a bottom, which could be followed by a sustained period of slow price movement, according to K33.

Mixed UK inflation data no gamechanger for the Bank of England

Food inflation plunged in January, but service sector price pressure is proving stickier. We continue to expect Bank of England rate cuts in March and June. The latest UK inflation read is a mixed bag for the Bank of England, but we doubt it drastically changes the odds of a March rate cut.

Sui extends sideways action ahead of Grayscale’s GSUI ETF launch

Sui is extending its downtrend for the second consecutive day, trading at 0.95 at the time of writing on Wednesday. The Layer-1 token is down over 16% in February and approximately 34% from the start of the year, aligning with the overall bearish sentiment across the crypto market.