Dollar Declines vs. Yen as Durable Goods Orders Unexpectedly Fell

The U.S. dollar fell today against the Japanese yen after the report today showed that the orders for the U.S. durable goods fell unexpectedly in June, fueling the concern for the economic recovery and spurring the investors to turn to the safety of Japan’s currency. The EUR/USD moves up and down today after it closed yesterday near its opening level.

Durable goods orders declined for the second consecutive month, falling by 1.0 percent in June after dropping 0.8 percent in May. The impact of this report was even more significant as the market participants anticipated the growth, not another month of decline. The unfavorable economic data outweighed the better than expected corporate earning, causing the Standard & Poor's 500 index drop by 0.5 percent. The Stoxx Europe 600 index was down 0.4 percent.

Ben Bernanke, the Chairman of the United States Federal Reserve said on July 21st that “the economic outlook remains unusually uncertain”. The data from the U.S. definitely added to the risk aversion sentiment on the markets, increasing the appeal of the yen.

USD/JPY traded near 87.67 as of 16:27 GMT today after opening at 87.90. EUR/USD near 1.2995 close to the opening level of 1.2996.