USD/JPY: Depressed near 105.50 as risk dwindles ahead of US NFP

• USD/JPY struggles for a clear direction after flashing three days of losses.
• US Senators fall apart in stimulus talks, pushed to ignore August vacation.
• Washington-Ottawa trade tussle, virus woes add to the risk-off mood.
• American jobs report, talks over the aid package will be the key catalysts.

USD/JPY makes rounds to 105.50 during the initial hour of Tokyo open on Friday. While the pre-NFP trading lull could be cited as the pair’s recent inactivity after posting three-day losing streak the previous day, risk catalysts suggest a further weakening of the quote.

Nothing moves before the US jobs report…

Although American lawmakers failed to offer any announcement on the coronavirus (COVID-19) relief package and the US-Canada tussle is back, not to forget virus woes on Victoria and Tokyo, the global markets remain mostly silent. America’s July month employment data is to blame for the lack of reaction.

The recent comments from the US Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer confirm that both the parties are far from any agreement over the much-awaited phase 4 fiscal stimulus. Earlier during the day, the Republican head of the Senate Mitch McConnell called off the discussions for this week to resume on Monday at 03:00 PM EDT. In doing so, the diplomat pushed lawmakers towards the tiring discussion during the general August vacation.

Elsewhere, the Trump administration recalls tariffs on Canada’s aluminum to renew the trade war among the global majors. Following the announcement from the US, the other side marked 15:00 GMT as the key time for any response.

Furthermore, Aussie Treasurer Josh Frydenberg announced furthering of the government wallet strings for the JobKeeper program. The Aussie government official announced $13.00 billion of $15.6 billion package to be allowed to Victoria. On the other hand, BOJ policymakers stand ready for action with the recent numbers tracking record highs. Tokyo marked 360 new cases on Thursday versus 263 prior.

Against this backdrop, S&P 500 Futures drop 0.13% to 3,340 whereas Japan’s Nikkei 225 and Australia’s ASX 200 also weaken by nearly 0.50% by the press time.

US President Donald Trump’s signal to use executive order for the unemployment claim benefits pushes traders to keep eyes on the news feeds. However, major attention will be given to the July month’s employment data due to the latest weakness in early indicators. Forecasts suggest the headlines Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) to weaken to 1600K from 4800K prior whereas Unemployment Rate may ease to 10.5% from 11.1%.

Read: Nonfarm Payrolls Preview: Hints point to an awful July

Technical analysis

While bears are likely to dominate below 106.00, 105.30/25 and 104.70 could offer chances for the pair’s bounce.