GBP/JPY stumbles into new low as Japan Machinery Orders miss

• Sterling takes a header against the Yen as Japan Machinery Orders miss the mark.
• Japan saw an unexpected contraction in both the m/m and y/y figures, sending traders into the safe haven JPY.

The GBP/JPY is sliding in Asia markets as the already-weak Sterling faces a fresh round of risk aversion in the early Thursday session as Yen traders seek safety after Japan's Machinery Orders figures broadly missed expectations in the early hours.

The Guppy is knocking into 142.65, a twelve-month low for the pair as m/m Machinery Orders for Japan steepened their recent contraction, coming in at -8.8%, far below the expected -1.3% and extending the slide from the previous month's -3.7%; the y/y figure is likewise in the red, but still holding above the 0.0 figure, coming in at a very soft 0.3% versus the expected 9.5% and completely wiping out the previous year's 16.5%. Safe havens are once again a popular call in the Asia market session, and the GBP is continuing to grind lower after losing the 143.00 technical level on Wednesday.

GBP/JPY levels to watch

With the pair down into 12-month bottoms, with August 2017's major swing low of 139.25 representing the nearest support level for the pair, while resistance levels overheard are beginning to look further and further away, with last week's low of 144.50 far above, and last week's high near 147.00 representing a solid 3% decline into today's prices.