Ella 
In early Asian trading on Friday, the Australian dollar/yen cross was still facing selling pressure and closed lower for the second consecutive day. As of press time, AUD/JPY was up 0.03% on the day at 94.71.
The latest data on Friday showed the S&P Global Australia Services Purchasing Managers’ Index for September flashed at 50.5, up from the previous reading of 47.8. On the other hand, the manufacturing purchasing managers index fell to 48.2 from the previous value of 49.6. The composite PMI also rose to 50.2 from 48.0. Mixed Australian economic data failed to boost the Australian dollar as investors turned cautious ahead of the much-anticipated Bank of Japan (BOJ) interest rate decision.
In terms of the Japanese yen, the Bank of Japan is generally expected to maintain its short-term interest rate target of -0.1% and its 10-year bond yield target of around 0%. The Bank of Japan has previously announced that it will not consider adjusting monetary policy until local wage and inflation data meet expectations. The market is eager to know whether Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda will release new signals at the post-meeting press conference regarding the timing of monetary policy adjustments and other adjustments to the bond yield curve control policy.
In terms of data, Japan’s national consumer price index (CPI) fell to an annual rate of 3.2% in August from the previous value of 3.3%. Additionally, the national consumer price index, excluding fresh food, rose to 3.1% in August from 3.0% in July, while the national core consumer price index, excluding food and energy, was 4.3%, down from 4.3% in the previous month.
Market participants will be closely watching the Bank of Japan’s (BOJ) interest rate decision later on Friday. This event could spark market volatility and point the way towards an AUD/JPY cross.
