USD/JPY climbs to challenge 110.00

USD/JPY extended gains to fresh daily highs and approached to the 110 mark, following the release of stronger-than-expected US housing data.

USD/JPY stretched to the upside and touched a high of 110.00 also underpinned by positive sentiment in markets, although it continues to struggle to break decisively above the psychological handle. At time of writing, the pair is trading at 109.95, up 0.65% on the day.

On the data front, sales of new homes in the US rose 16.6% in April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 619,000, marking the fastest pace since January 2008 and beating expectations of 523,000.

USD/JPY levels to watch

As for technical levels, next resistances could be faced at 110.23 (May 23 high), 110.57 (May 20 high) and 111.87 (Apr 28 high). On the other hand, supports are seen at 109.10 (May 23 low), 108.75 (21-day SMA) and 108.45 (May 16 low).