USD/JPY Price Forecast: Trades flat near 159.00 as investors seek fresh developments on Iran war
Oleh Sagar Dua
Diperbarui: 21 May 2026
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The USD/JPY pair trades calmly around 159.00 during the Asian trading session on Thursday. The pair turns sideways as investors await fresh developments regarding negotiations between the United States (US) and Iran, after President Donald Trump stated on Wednesday that talks are in “final stages”.
- USD/JPY flattens around 159.00 in countdown to US-Iran deal announcement.
- US President Trump said that Washington is in final stages over deal with Iran.
- 10-year JGB yields remain firm due to growing Japan fiscal worries.
The USD/JPY pair trades calmly around 159.00 during the Asian trading session on Thursday. The pair turns sideways as investors await fresh developments regarding negotiations between the United States (US) and Iran, after President Donald Trump stated on Wednesday that talks are in “final stages”.
As of writing, the US Dollar Index (DXY), which tracks the Greenback's value against six major currencies, trades marginally higher to near 99.20. The DXY’s rally hit pause on Wednesday after posting a fresh six-week high at 99.47, following US President Trump expressing confidence that a deal with Iran would be finalized soon.
We’re in the final stages of Iran. We’ll see what happens. Either have a deal or we’re going to do some things that are a little bit nasty, but hopefully that won’t happen,” Trump said, Bloomberg reported.
The optimism over the US-Iran, which resulted in a sharp decline in oil prices, has also slightly diminished expectations supporting the Federal Reserve (Fed) to hike interest rates this year. According to the CME FedWatch tool, the odds of the Fed delivering at least one interest rate hike this year have cooled down to 51% from 61.3% seen on Tuesday. Still, there is a sharp turnaround from two interest rate cuts anticipated before the Middle East war started.
In Japan, the announcement of an extra budget by Prime Minister (PM) Sanae Takaichi, which aims to offset the impact of the Middle East situation has raised fiscal concerns. 10-year Japan Government Bond (JGB) yields are up 0.11% to near 2.77%, close to its multi-decade high of 2.81% posted on Tuesday.
USD/JPY technical analysis
USD/JPY trades almost flat at around 159.00 at the press time. The pair holds a modest bullish bias as it remains above the 20-day exponential moving average (EMA) at 158.37.
The Relative Strength Index (RSI) is around 55 points to neutral-to-positive momentum, hinting that buyers still have the upper hand while avoiding overbought conditions.
On the downside, immediate support is located at the 20-day EMA near 158.37, where a daily close below would weaken the constructive tone and open the door to a deeper corrective slide towards the May 14 low of 157.31. Looking up, the pair aims to revisit the April 30 high of 160.73.
(The technical analysis of this story was written with the help of an AI tool.)
US Dollar FAQs
The US Dollar (USD) is the official currency of the United States of America, and the ‘de facto’ currency of a significant number of other countries where it is found in circulation alongside local notes. It is the most heavily traded currency in the world, accounting for over 88% of all global foreign exchange turnover, or an average of $6.6 trillion in transactions per day, according to data from 2022. Following the second world war, the USD took over from the British Pound as the world’s reserve currency. For most of its history, the US Dollar was backed by Gold, until the Bretton Woods Agreement in 1971 when the Gold Standard went away.
The most important single factor impacting on the value of the US Dollar is monetary policy, which is shaped by the Federal Reserve (Fed). The Fed has two mandates: to achieve price stability (control inflation) and foster full employment. Its primary tool to achieve these two goals is by adjusting interest rates. When prices are rising too quickly and inflation is above the Fed’s 2% target, the Fed will raise rates, which helps the USD value. When inflation falls below 2% or the Unemployment Rate is too high, the Fed may lower interest rates, which weighs on the Greenback.
In extreme situations, the Federal Reserve can also print more Dollars and enact quantitative easing (QE). QE is the process by which the Fed substantially increases the flow of credit in a stuck financial system. It is a non-standard policy measure used when credit has dried up because banks will not lend to each other (out of the fear of counterparty default). It is a last resort when simply lowering interest rates is unlikely to achieve the necessary result. It was the Fed’s weapon of choice to combat the credit crunch that occurred during the Great Financial Crisis in 2008. It involves the Fed printing more Dollars and using them to buy US government bonds predominantly from financial institutions. QE usually leads to a weaker US Dollar.
Quantitative tightening (QT) is the reverse process whereby the Federal Reserve stops buying bonds from financial institutions and does not reinvest the principal from the bonds it holds maturing in new purchases. It is usually positive for the US Dollar.
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