EUR/JPY Price Forecast: Bulls and bears jostle around 200-hour SMA, above mid-162.00s

• EUR/JPY attracts some dip-buyers following an Asian session slide to the 162.00 mark.
• The technical setup warrants caution for bulls and before positioning for further gains.
• A convincing break below the 200-day SMA will be seen as a fresh trigger for bears.

The EUR/JPY cross dropped to the 162.00 mark during the Asian session on Tuesday and eroded a major part of the previous day's gains led by the optimism over the EU tariff delay. Spot prices, however, recover the early lost ground and currently trade just above mid-162.00s, nearly unchanged for the day.

From a technical perspective, oscillators on hourly/daily charts have been struggling to gain positive traction. Moreover, the recent repeated failures near the 200-hour Simple Moving (SMA), currently pegged around the 162.75 region, warrant some caution for the EUR/JPY bulls. Hence, it will be prudent to wait for sustained strength beyond the said barrier before positioning for further gains.

The subsequent move-up will suggest that the recent pullback from the 165.20 area, or the year-to-date high touched earlier this month has run its course and pave the way for further gains. The EUR/JPY cross might then climb further beyond the 163.00 mark and ascend further towards the 163.40-163.45 supply zone en route to the 164.00 round figure.

On the flip side, the 162.00 round figure now seems to protect the immediate downside ahead of the 200-day SMA, around the 161.45 region. A convincing break below the latter might shift the near-term bias in favor of bearish traders and make the EUR/JPY cross vulnerable to retesting Friday's swing low, around the 161.00 round figure. Spot prices could eventually drop to the 160.00 psychological mark.

EUR/JPY 1-hour chart