USD/JPY breaks higher towards 103.50, NFP eyed

The USD/JPY pair broke its Asian consolidation box to the upside ahead of the European open, and now heads towards the mid-point of 103 handle.

USD/JPY awaits US payrolls

Despite calls for a weaker start to the European markets, the USD/JPY pair is seen accelerating gains, having taken-out Asian session tops at 103.20 levels.

The latest leg higher in the USD/JPY pair is mainly attributed a profit-taking slide in the Japanese yen after three consecutive days of heavy declines, as markets seek to clear out positions ahead of the highly-influential US non-farm payrolls data due later in the NA session.

The major is last seen exchanging hand near daily highs of 103.30, up +0.30% on the day. While the USD index trades +0.10% higher at 97.30, hovering close to session highs reached at 97.35 in the last hour.

USD/JPY Technical levels to watch 

In terms of technicals , the immediate resistance is located at 103.44 (daily R1). A break above the last, the major could test 103.67 (5-DMA) and 104.03 (20-DMA) beyond the last. While to the downside, the immediate support is seen at 102.85/83 (100-DMA/ daily low) next at 102.54 (multi-week lows) and below that at 102 (round number).

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