Japan

The USD/JPY currency pair remained relatively unchanged on Tuesday, managing to retain its position above the 115.00 mark. From the technical point of view, the Buck is likely to strengthen against the Japanese Yen today, rebounding from the four-week up-trend and putting the immediate resistance area circa 116.30 to the test. On the other hand, with fundamental events being the main drivers today, the outcome can be less pleasant for the American Dollar. There are risks involved, which can cause the given pair drop even below 113.00, completely ignoring the two closest demand areas.

The japanese beer group Asahi said Tuesday it has agreed to acquire beer brands SABMiller Plc’s eastern European assets including Pilsner Urquell from Anheuser-Busch InBev NV for 7.3 billion euros ($7.8 billion),

The deal gives bigger international heft to Asahi, which is one of the top beer makers in its home market of Japan, but only a small player globally. Asahi said it planned to acquire brands in the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Slovakia and Romania.

AB InBev said it had made commitments to the European Commission to sell the CEE Business under the business combination with SABMiller.

The USD/JPY currency pair behaved in accordance with expectations on Thursday, having successfully retaken the 113.00 level and leaving the immediate resistance area intact. Despite technical indicators retaining bullish signals, the Buck now is under higher risk of weakening against the Japanese currency, as the pair still faces a rather strong resistance, now formed by the weekly R2 and the 23.60% Fibo. Even if bulls manage to push the Greenback higher, a surge beyond the ascending channel’s resistance line at 114.44 is unlikely. The base case scenario is a decline up to 100 pips, as a slump further would imply a downside breach of the channel pattern.

Japan’s consumer prices fell in September for the seventh straight month, data showed Friday, heaping more pressure on the central bank to push back its inflation target deadline, the government announced Friday. The disappointing data came as the world’s third largest economy struggles to kick-start growth and conquer a long battle against deflation.

The Markit/Nikkei flash manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) came in at 51.7 in October, up from a final September reading of 50.4. Analysts in a median estimate called for an increase to 50.6. A PMI reading above 50 indicates expansion in economic activity.

The October reading was the highest since July 2015, and followed the first expansion in headline PMI in seven months. Output, new export orders and employment increased at a faster rate this month, while new orders returned to positive territory.

Now it’s official: Nissan bought 34% stake in Mitsubishi. The deal cost Nissan $2.3 billion, according to the Wall Street Journal, and brings Mitsubishi into the Nissan-Renault Alliance. Carlos Ghosn, CEO of both Nissan and Renault, has been nominated to be the new chairman of the Mitsubishi board. The agreement created the world’s fourth-largest auto group, after Toyota, Volkswagen and General Motors.

Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe called on the country’s parliament to ratify the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) deal, signed in February, before other states. And Abe stressed the Parliament should approve the TPP treaty before the current session ends on Nov. 30.

"We could provide an impetus for the entry of this agreement into force by approving it in parliament faster than other countries," Abe said. He added Japan will help provide momentum to the TPP and help make it a reality by approving it in the Diet (Japanese parliament) ahead of other countries, according to the Kyodo news agency.

Some hawkish comments from the Fed caused the Greenback to add more than 120 pips against the Yen yesterday, nearly managing to retake the 103.00 mark. Even though technical indicators are no longer giving bearish signals, a possibility of bears taking over still exists. Nonetheless, a tough support cluster around the 102.00 major level is more than capable of handling any bearish development, while gains could potentially extend towards 103.75, where the monthly R1 coincides with the weekly R3 and the 100-day SMA. Moreover, the 104.00 level also represents significant psychological resistance, which remained intact for more than two months now.