The dollar may strengthen 9.2 percent to 102.51 yen this quarter, based on trading patterns, said Masashi Hashimoto, a currency analyst at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd. in Tokyo. The currency’s rise beyond so-called resistance at the 21- day moving average of 90.83 yen and the 14-day relative strength index’s gain above 50 indicate the greenback’s “upward momentum” has improved, Hashimoto said. Resistance is a level where sell orders may be clustered. “There’s been a change in price action to the upside,” Hashimoto said. “The final target is the 200-day moving average of 102.51 yen, possibly by the end of March.” The dollar rose to 93.84 yen as of 2:20 p.m. in Tokyo from 93.65 late in New York yesterday when it reached 94.63, the highest level since Dec. 1. The U.S. currency has gained 7.6 percent since reaching a 13-year low of 87.14 on Dec. 17. Hashimoto said the U.S. currency’s resistance levels are the 65-day moving average of 95.14 yen, the 90-day moving average of 98.14 yen and the lower and upper ends of a so-called ichimoku cloud at 95.88 yen and 99.05 yen, respectively. An ichimoku chart analyzes the midpoints of historic highs and lows. A cloud, used to indicate a resistance zone, is the area between the first and second leading span lines on the chart. In technical analysis, investors and analysts study charts of trading patterns and prices to forecast changes in a security, commodity, currency or index.

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