GBP/JPY flattens ahead of Japanese Retail Trade figures

The GBP/JPY is caught amidst a congestion pattern as markets mix on the Guppy.
BoJ resumes hinting at the end of negative rates if wages firm up next year.
Post-holiday markets are struggling to find meaningful momentum.

The GBP/JPY is back into familiar near-term prices after a failed bull run towards the high side of 182.10, slipping back towards the 181.00 handle. The Japanese Yen is firming up after Bank of Japan (BoJ) Governor Kazou Ueda repeating comments that negative rates could see the end in sight.

Read More: Possibility of ending negative interest rates next year is not zero

BoJ Governor Ueda’s comments sent the Yen slightly higher, but the GBP/JPY remains caught on near-term technical support with limited momentum in either direction.

Forex Today: No support for the Dollar

Japanese Retail Trade figures are due early in the Asia market session where investors will be expecting a slight uptick in retail volumes. Japanese Retail Sales for the year into November are expected to improve from 4.2% to 5%.

UK data is nearly absent from the economic data docket this week, with low-tier Nationwide Housing Prices for October being the only data representation for the GBP, slated for Friday.

GBP/JPY Technical Outlook

The GBP/JPY is consolidating into the 200-hour Simple Moving Average (SMA) just above the 181.00 handle after a brief rally into 182.20.

The pair's flattening is happening just north of the 200-day SMA rising into 179.00, and downside momentum is set to remain limited with the 200-day SMA rising to catch up to the GBP/JPY's nearly 15% rise from 2023's early lows near 156.50

Despite the pair's performance for most of the year, the Pound Sterling remains capped by the Japanese Yen, having declined nearly 4% from the pair's yearly highs near 188.66.