USD/JPY trades above 108.50 as USD preserves strength

• US Dollar Index advances toward the 96 mark on Tuesday.
• Wall Street set to open lower amid weak earnings data from large financial institutions.

Despite the souring market sentiment, the USD/JPY pair continues to trade in the positive territory on Tuesday as the greenback outperforms its major rivals. As of writing, the pair was up 0.35% on the day at 108.58.

During the first half of the day, the JPY alongside with other traditional safe-havens lost interest as China addressed the economic slowdown and announced new measures to boost the growth. However, with big financial institutions such as JP Morgan and Wells Fargo reporting weaker than expected revenue figures for the fourth quarter, the positive mood started to fade with European indices turning negative on the day and US stocks futures erasing a major portion of their early gains.

Meanwhile, the broad-based USD strength in the session didn't allow the pair to lose its traction on Tuesday. As investors continue to stay away from European currencies, the US Dollar Index stays in the positive territory at 95.87, adding 0.3% on the day. Today's data from the U.S: showed that the PPI on a yearly basis came in at 2.5% to match November's reading and market expectations.

Technical levels to consider