Forex: GBP/JPY falls on option trading but is held by 151.00

FXstreet.com (Barcelona) - Today’s upside was limited to 152.23 high in both attempts Asian and London sessions. However, options trading in strengthened the Yen enough to pull the GBP/JPY to as low as 150.91, being supported by the 151.00 mark. The cross is now bouncing progressively, currently at 151.30.

The BoJ will have its next monetary policy meeting on Friday, April 26, and it’s expected to stay unchanged. However, the central bank will update its forecasts to “help reinforce what impact they see their aggressive easing having on inflation”, wrote TD Securities.

Despite the daily rise, the British Pound is dealing with the UK credit rating downgrade by Fitch agency from AAA to AA+/stable Friday night. “As we’ve been through this before we don’t expect unusual price action in gilts today, although GBP is probably more vulnerable to some near-term weakness. The UK government leaked on Sunday that an augmentation to Funding for Lending will be announced over the next two weeks”, wrote TD Securities analyst Annette Beacher.

Mataf.net analysts point to resistance at 152.20, 152.55 and 153.35. On the downside, supports might be found at 151.70, 150.90 and 150.50.