USD/JPY climbs for third straight session

USD/JPY tilted higher in Asian trade to February 16 highs following earlier data from Japan and ahead of US data and as markets price in the developing Russian-Ukrainian conflict. 

As of 06:11 GMT, USD/JPY rose 0.32% to 115.52, after marking a two-week high at 115.78, while closing last week at 115.51.

From Japan, industrial production declined 1.3% in January, compared to a 1% drop in December.

Japan's retail sales tumbled 1.9% in January month on month, while rising 1.6% on a yearly basis.

Japan's housing starts rose 2.1% in January, slowing down from a 4.2% increase in December, while analysts expected 2.2%.

Russian troops continue their advance towards the Ukrainian capital of Kiev with street fighting flaring already surrounding  the capita.

The US and allies announced new sanctions against Russia, including banning some Russian banks from the Swift global payment system, while several countries closed their airspace against Russian airplanes.

From the US, the goods trade balance is expected down to $99.6 billion from $101 billion in December, while wholesale inventories are expected up 1.3%, slowing down from 2.2% in December.