Japanese Yen underperforms vs USD as Iran tensions offset intervention risks before US CPI
Di Haresh Menghani
Aggiornato: 12 May 2026
ARTICOLI POPOLARI
The USD/JPY pair reverses a knee-jerk decline to the 156.75-156.70 region and climbs to the top end of its daily range during the first half of the European session.
- USD/JPY fades an intraday knee-jerk slide as a broadly firmer USD counters intervention fear.
- Economic concerns stemming from Iran tensions undermine the JPY and support spot prices.
- Traders look forward to the latest US consumer inflation figures for some meaningful impetus.
The USD/JPY pair reverses a knee-jerk decline to the 156.75-156.70 region and climbs to the top end of its daily range during the first half of the European session. Spot prices currently trade above mid-157.00s, up for the second straight day, as traders look to the US consumer inflation figures for a fresh impetus.
The Japanese Yen (JPY) gets a strong intraday boost after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed through a post on X that the US and Japan took some actions together against excessive volatility in currency markets. Moreover, Japan's top currency diplomat Atsushi Mimura had said last week that Japan is in daily contact with US authorities nd faces no constraints on how often it can intervene in markets. This, along with the Bank of Japan's (BoJ) hawkish outlook, lifts the JPY and prompts some selling around the USD/JPY pair.
In fact, the Summary of Opinions from the Bank of Japan's (BoJ) April meeting left the door open for an imminent rate hike. The supporting factors, however, were offset by economic concerns stemming from renewed US-Iran tensions, which underpins the US Dollar's (USD) reserve currency status and assists the USD/JPY pair to regain positive traction. The optimism over a potential US-Iran peace deal faded quickly amid major disagreements over Tehran's nuclear program and a standoff over the critical Strait of Hormuz.
Furthermore, US President Donald Trump said that the ongoing US-Iran ceasefire was "unbelievably weak" and was on "massive life support." Adding to this, some Trump aides say that he is now more seriously considering a resumption of major combat operations than he has in recent weeks. This spark fears of a fresh escalation in the conflict and supports the USD amid hawkish US Federal Reserve (Fed) expectations. Traders, however, might opt to wait for the US inflation figures before placing fresh bets on the USD/JPY pair.
The crucial US Consumer Price Index (CPI) report will play a key role in influencing expectations about the Fed's policy path amid revived bets for a rate hike by the end of this year. The outlook, in turn, will drive the USD demand. Apart from this, fresh developments surrounding the Middle East crisis might infuse volatility in the financial markets and provide some meaningful impetus to the USD/JPY pair.
US Dollar Price Today
The table below shows the percentage change of US Dollar (USD) against listed major currencies today. US Dollar was the strongest against the British Pound.
| USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USD | 0.32% | 0.61% | 0.24% | 0.22% | 0.44% | 0.32% | 0.34% | |
| EUR | -0.32% | 0.29% | -0.06% | -0.14% | 0.10% | -0.03% | 0.02% | |
| GBP | -0.61% | -0.29% | -0.36% | -0.43% | -0.19% | -0.31% | -0.27% | |
| JPY | -0.24% | 0.06% | 0.36% | -0.07% | 0.16% | 0.04% | 0.07% | |
| CAD | -0.22% | 0.14% | 0.43% | 0.07% | 0.22% | 0.10% | 0.13% | |
| AUD | -0.44% | -0.10% | 0.19% | -0.16% | -0.22% | -0.12% | -0.09% | |
| NZD | -0.32% | 0.03% | 0.31% | -0.04% | -0.10% | 0.12% | 0.02% | |
| CHF | -0.34% | -0.02% | 0.27% | -0.07% | -0.13% | 0.09% | -0.02% |
The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the US Dollar from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the Japanese Yen, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent USD (base)/JPY (quote).
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