The post Japanese Yen strengthens as BoJ rate hike speculation grows appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.

The USD/JPY pair attracts some sellers near 154.80 during the early Asian session on Wednesday. The Japanese Yen (JPY) strengthens against the US Dollar (USD) amid growing speculation that the Bank of Japan (BoJ) will hike rates to 0.75% on Friday.  The US Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP)rose by 64,000 in November after declining 105,000 in October, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported on Tuesday. This reading came in stronger than the market expectation for an increase of 50,000. The report also showed that NFP declined by 105,000 in October. Meanwhile, the Unemployment Rate in the US climbed to 4.6% in November from 4.4% in October.  The Greenback faced some selling pressure in the immediate reaction to the mixed US employment report. Fed policymakers are divided on whether additional rate cuts are needed in 2026. The median Fed official forecasts just one reduction next year, although traders expect two.  The BoJ is anticipated to raise interest rates to 0.75% from 0.5% at a two-day policy meeting ending on Friday, a three-decade high, and pledge to keep hiking borrowing costs. Traders ramped up their bets for an imminent BoJ rate hike following Governor Kazuo Ueda’s comments last week, saying that the likelihood of the central bank’s baseline economic and price outlook materializing had been gradually increasing. Firming BoJ rate hike expectations could boost the JPY and act as a headwind for the pair in the near term.  Federal Reserve (Fed) officials are scheduled to speak later on Wednesday, including New York Fed President John Williams and Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic. Any hawkish comments from Fed policymakers might help limit the Greenback’s losses.  Japanese Yen FAQs The Japanese Yen (JPY) is one of the world’s most traded currencies. Its value is broadly determined by the performance of the Japanese economy, but more specifically…

---

Filed under: News - @ December 17, 2025 12:25 am