The Japanese Yen (JPY) ticks higher in reaction to comments from Japan's Economy Minister Ryosei Akazawa during the Asian session on Friday, albeit it lacks bullish conviction amid the Bank of Japan (BoJ) rate hike uncertainty. Data released earlier today showed that real household spending in Japan fell for the fourth month in November and pointed to an economic fragility. This gives the BoJ another reason to be cautious about raising interest rate hikes further, which might continue to undermine the JPY.

Furthermore, the US-Japan bond yield differentials have widened significantly over the past month in the wake of the Federal Reserve's (Fed) hawkish shift. This might further contribute to capping the lower-yielding JPY and should act as a tailwind for the USD/JPY pair amid a bullish US Dollar (USD). Meanwhile, traders might opt to move to the sidelines and wait for the release of the crucial US Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) report before placing aggressive directional bets around the currency pair.

Japan's Economy Minister Ryosei Akazawa said this Friday that Japan's economy is at a 'critical stage' in eradicating the public's deflationary mindset and shifting to a phase where growth is spearheaded by higher wages and investment.
Government data released earlier today showed that inflation-adjusted household spending in Japan  a key indicator of private consumption fell for the fourth month, by 0.4% in November from a year earlier amid stubbornly high prices.

This comes on top of a drop in real wages for the fourth consecutive month in November and points to broadening inflationary pressure, which keeps the door open for another interest rate hike by the Bank of Japan in January or March.
Some investors, however, are betting that the BoJ may wait until April to seek confirmation that strong wage momentum will carry over into the spring negotiations between companies and labor unions before pulling the trigger.
The US Dollar stands tall near a two-year peak and assists the USD/JPY pair to hold steady above the 158.00 mark as traders keenly await the release of the US jobs data – popularly known as the Nonfarm Payrolls report later today.(Cay) newsmaker23

Source: Fxstreet