Yen rose in Asian trade on Monday against a basket of major rivals, moving higher for the first time in four sessions against the dollar away from three-week lows.

The gains come after bullish remarks from BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda about the need to normalize monetary policies, in turn boosting the odds of an interest rate cut later this year.

The Price

The USD/JPY pair fell 0.2% today to 156.68 yen, with a session-high at 157.00.

The pair lost 0.1% on Friday, the third loss in a row, plumbing three-week lows at 157.20.

Yen also lost 0.85% last week against the dollar as US treasury yields rebounded and the odds of multiple Fed rate cuts this year faded.

Ueda

Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda said the central bank is cautiously moving towards achieving its economic targets, with a focus on normalizing policies in the near future.

He asserted that weak consumption and higher treasury yields in Japan wont impede normalization efforts.

His deputy governor, Shinichi Uchida, said that the BOJ continues to face challenges in holding inflation steady at 2%, however, he signaled the bank is ready to normalize policies.

Japanese Rates

A survey by Reuters indicated many analysts expect the Bank of Japan to raise interest rates either in the third or fourth quarter of the year.

US Treasury Yields

The BOJ is also likely to reduce its government bonds purchases soon enough, which in turn boosted 10-year treasury yields to a 12-year peak at 1.005% on Friday.