USD/JPY tumbles to mid-109.00, lowest since Sept. 12

   •  USD bearish slide accelerates after Mnuchin's comments.
   •  JPY benefits further from reviving safe-haven demand.
   •  US data eyed for some immediate respite for the bulls.

The greenback remained heavily offered across the board and dragged the USD/JPY pair farther below the key 110.00 psychological mark, to its lowest level since Sept. 12th.

The US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin's comments, saying that he welcomed a weaker greenback, further dented the already weaker sentiment surrounding the US Dollar and aggravated the selling pressure surrounding the major. 

Meanwhile, the latest protectionist measures by the US, the new tariffs on solar panels and washing machines, sparked concerns about a global trade battle and has led to some risk-aversion trade, which provided an additional boost to the Japanese Yen's safe-haven appeal and further collaborated to the pair's downfall to mid-109.00s.

With today's slide, the pair has now retreated over 150-pips from post-BOJ swing highs, beyond the 111.00 handle, and has failed to find any buyers despite technically oversold conditions.

It would now be interesting to see if the pair extends its bearish slide as traders now look forward to the second-tier US economic data - flash PMI prints and existing home sales data, for some immediate respite for the USD bulls. 

Technical levels to watch

Immediate support is now pegged near 109.20 area and is closely followed by the 109.00 handle. On the upside, any recovery attempts might continue to confront fresh supply near the 110.00 mark, above which a bout of short-covering could lift the pair back towards 110.35-40 hurdle.