Even with the drop in Treasury yields yesterday, it did little to faze price action in USD/JPY. The pair remains underpinned but buyers are not gathering enough courage to take things further. For now, the 155.00 hurdle remains one step too far after all the verbal intervention by Japanese officials. But still, the chart shows that buyers remain poised and are keeping in near-term control.

USDJPY H1 18-04
USD/JPY hourly chart

The consolidative mood just under 155.00 is reminiscent of when price action was hovering just below the 152.00 mark for roughly two weeks. What traders need is some form of impetus or trigger point to really bolster the case for the next leg higher in the pair.

That being said, just be mindful that with each and every step higher, we are definitely pushing the threshold on Tokyo intervention.

For now, the near-term chart above shows that buyers are still in control. That is seen as price is holding just above 154.00 with the 100-hour moving average (red line) being defended as well.

But without any real trigger points, it would really take some nerve to go wandering closer to 155.00 at this stage. As such, the pair could find itself caught in this range for quite a bit over the next week or so.