USD/JPY moves back closer to multi-month tops, around 109.25-30 region

• A modest pickup in the USD demand helped regain some traction.
• The uptick seemed rather unaffected by renewed trade uncertainty.
• Bulls even shrugged off a weaker tone surrounding the US bond yields.

The USD/JPY pair caught some fresh bids on Tuesday and has now moved well within the striking distance of multi-month tops set last week.
 
Having shown some resilience below the very important 200-day SMA, or the 109.00 handle in the previous session, the pair managed to regain some positive traction during the Asian session on Tuesday and was being supported by a modest pickup in the US Dollar demand.

Focus remains on trade developments

The uptick seemed rather unaffected by the mixed market mood amid political unrest in Hong Kong, which tends to underpin the Japanese Yen’s safe-haven demand. Even renewed US-China trade uncertainty and a weaker tone surrounding the US Treasury bond yields did little to hinder the intraday positive momentum.
 
It is worth recalling that the US President Donald Trump said over the weekend that trade talks were going “very nicely,” but there was no agreement yet on rollback of existing tariffs. Hence, the key focus will be on Trump’s appearance at the New York Economic Club later this Tuesday.
 
In the meantime, a scheduled speech by the Fed Governor Richard Clarida might influence the USD price dynamics, which coupled with the broader market risk sentiment will also be looked upon to grab some short-term trading opportunities around the major.

Technical levels to watch