USD/JPY holds losses below 147.50 ahead of Q2 US GDP Annualized

• USD/JPY struggles as the Japanese Yen receives support from recent hawkish comments from BoJ Governor Kazuo Ueda.
• BoJ's Nakagawa said the bank will gather data before meetings to avoid falling behind the curve.
• Fed's John Williams said that rates will likely be lowered at some point, though, assessing upcoming data first.

USD/JPY depreciates after registering a steady previous session, trading around 147.30 during the European hours on Thursday. The pair loses ground as the Japanese Yen (JPY) gains ground, driven by recent comments from the Bank of Japan (BoJ) Governor Kazuo Ueda. Ueda said that wage hikes are spreading beyond large firms and are likely to keep accelerating due to a tightening job market, boosting market hopes of a further interest rate hike in the coming months.

BoJ monetary policy board member Junko Nakagawa said on Thursday that the central bank will gather information as much as possible ahead of every policy meeting to avoid falling behind the curve, given solid wage growth over the last several years. Earlier in the day, Nakagawa stated, "If its outlook for economic activity and prices is realized, BoJ will continue to raise the policy interest rate."

Reuters reported on Thursday that Japan's trade negotiator Ryosei Akazawa has canceled a visit to the United States (US) this week. The visit aimed to discuss the financial details of Tokyo's $550 billion investment package in return for reduced tariffs on imports from the world's fourth-largest economy.

However, the downside of the USD/NZD pair could be restrained as the US Dollar (USD) holds ground amid rising odds of US Federal Reserve (Fed) interest rate cuts. Traders await the Q2 US Gross Domestic Product (GDP) Annualized due later on Thursday. Focus will shift toward July Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index data, the Fed's preferred inflation gauge.

New York Fed President John Williams stated on Wednesday that interest rates will likely decrease at some point, but policymakers will need to review upcoming economic data before September's policy decision.