Japanese Yen's Retail Trade Strength Fails to Boost Currency

The Japanese Yen's recent strength in retail trade figures failed to translate into significant gains for the currency, with USD/JPY holding under 160.00 after an early push above the handle was sold back inside the session.

Japan's Retail Trade rose 4% YoY in July against a 3% consensus, while the seasonally adjusted monthly series rose 2.4% from a 3.9% contraction, and Large Retailer Sales came in at 1.4% against a 1% decline.

The Bank of Japan (BoJ) has been pricing in a September rate hike with an 80-90% probability, but the market reaction to the strong retail trade figures was muted, with USD/JPY trading down around 0.2%.