EUR/JPY: what a pip actually represents
EUR/JPY is a cross: it contains no US dollar, but the yen is the quote currency. The pip is the second decimal place in the quoted rate, and the pip value in yen is therefore the position size multiplied by that decimal increment. To express that in your account currency, the calculator must convert from yen, so the result moves with the USD/JPY rate when your account is in US dollars, with EUR/JPY itself when your account is in euros, and with the relevant cross when your account is in another currency.
This is the key difference from a dollar-quoted pair such as EUR/USD, where the pip value is fixed in dollar terms. Here the yen leg means the pip value in your own currency drifts even while the EUR/JPY rate is unchanged. Check the currency pair in the calculator before you size a position, because the same lot size can produce a different pip value from one day to the next.
| Instrument class | Cross pair |
|---|---|
| One pip | 0.01 |
| Standard lot | 100,000 EUR |
| Value of one pip per lot | 1,000 JPY — converting… |
| Notional value of one lot | — |
| Margin on one lot at 1:30 / 1:100 / 1:500 | — |
The last two rows move with the market and are filled in from the live rate; everything above them is fixed by the contract. Leverage available to you depends on your regulator and account type — check it in the platform before you size a position.
Where EUR/JPY volatility comes from
Two central banks sit on either side of this pair: the European Central Bank and the Bank of Japan. Their policy stances, and the market's expectation for where those stances are heading, are the primary fundamental drivers. The euro leg responds to euro-area inflation, growth and political risk, while the yen leg responds to Japanese inflation, wage data and the Bank of Japan's tolerance for a weaker currency. Because the pair is a cross, there is no US dollar in the quote itself, but US rates and global risk sentiment still transmit through the yen's role as a funding currency.
In practice, EUR/JPY often behaves as a risk barometer. When investors are comfortable taking risk, the yen tends to weaken and the pair can grind higher; when risk appetite turns, the yen strengthens and the pair can fall sharply. Watch the rate differential between euro-area and Japanese government bonds, and watch the tone from ECB and Bank of Japan communications. Those two channels, policy and risk sentiment, explain most of the large directional moves.
| Currency | Central bank | Policy rate | What moves it |
|---|---|---|---|
| EUR | European Central Bank (ECB) | Deposit facility rate | ECB · HICP · PMI |
| JPY | Bank of Japan (BoJ) | Short-term policy rate | BoJ · CPI · intervention signals |
Before you place a EUR/JPY order
EUR/JPY is most liquid when the European and Japanese sessions overlap, and liquidity is thinner during the Asian session before European desks open and again late in the New York session. Spreads are typically wider outside those windows, which directly affects the cost of entering and exiting. Before you enter, check the economic calendar for ECB and Bank of Japan events, and for euro-area and Japanese data releases that can move the pair without warning.
Because the pip value is not fixed in your account currency, confirm the current conversion in the calculator above before setting your position size. If your account is not in yen or euro, the yen leg adds an extra layer of currency risk: a move in the yen cross can change your pip value even if EUR/JPY itself is quiet. Size for the pip value you will actually have, not the one you had last week.
Spreads are tightest when two sessions are open at once and widest when one desk has gone home and the next has not arrived. The shaded band is the overlap.
Pip values sourced from ECB reference data (Frankfurter API). Live BTC/ETH prices from CoinGecko. All values are indicative and for educational purposes — not live trading quotes. See full pip value table →