USD/JPY holds positive ground above 154.00 as US Senate moves to end shutdown

• USD/JPY softens to around 154.10 in Wednesday's early Asian session.
• Signs that a resolution to the US government shutdown is nearing support the US Dollar. 
• ADP showed US private employers shed more jobs than they created in the four weeks ending October 25. 

The USD/JPY pair trades in positive territory near 154.10 during the early Asian session on Wednesday. The US Dollar (USD) strengthens against the Japanese Yen (JPY) amid optimism over a potential deal to end the US government shutdown. Federal Reserve (Fed) officials are set to speak later on Wednesday, including John Williams, Anna Paulson, Christopher Waller, Raphael Bostic, Stephen Miran and Susan Collins. 

Bloomberg reported late Tuesday that a record US government shutdown is on a path to end as soon as Wednesday after the Senate passed a temporary funding measure backed by a group of eight centrist Democrats. The spending package would keep most of the government open through January 30. The positive developments surrounding reopening the government could provide some support to the Greenback against the JPY in the near term. 

Nonetheless, weaker-than-expected ADP employment data might cap the upside for the USD. Private employers shed an average of 11,250 jobs per week on average in the four weeks ended October 25, the Automatic Data Processing (ADP) showed on Tuesday. The report suggested the labor market slowed in the second half of October, compared with earlier in the month. 

Expectations that Japanese authorities might intervene to stem further weakness in the domestic currency could underpin the JPY and create a headwind for the pair. Japan's Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama last week issued a warning against the JPY's rapid and one-sided movements, saying that the government is monitoring the situation with the utmost urgency amid market concerns that currency intervention may occur.