Japan ready to take necessary steps on yen movements: finance chief

Japan is closely watching currency movements and is ready to take all necessary steps, Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki said Friday, amid market caution about intervention to slow the yen’s fall to 34-year lows against the U.S. dollar.

Suzuki said he is “concerned” about the negative aspect of the weaker yen, while noting that it also has a positive side. He declined to say when and what specific steps the government would take against excessive volatility in the currency market.

“In line with our policy, the government will continue to monitor currency market developments closely and take all necessary steps” against excessive yen fluctuations, he told reporters.

The yen’s weakness stems from the still wide interest rate differential between Japan and the United States, despite the Bank of Japan’s decision last month to increase interest rates for the first time in 17 years. Financial markets have pared back expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve will start cutting rates as early as June after a series of robust economic data.

A weak yen inflates import costs for resource-scarce Japan and accelerates inflation, while boosting the overseas earnings of Japanese exporters in yen terms.

“We are concerned about the negative side of the weaker yen,” Suzuki said, adding that responding to rising prices is a major priority for the government.

His comments came ahead of the conclusion Friday of the BOJ’s two-day policy meeting, with attention focused on the Japanese central bank’s assessment of the impact of the yen’s recent depreciation on the economy, particularly inflation.

Some market participants say the yen could fall further depending on the outcome, boosting the likelihood of a yen-buying, dollar-selling intervention by Japan.

Japanese authorities have warned of “appropriate” action to rectify rapid yen movements in recent days, but the yen has already passed the 155 line, viewed by market players as a threshold that could prompt the government to step in.

Related coverage:

Dollar at 34-yr. highs in upper 155 yen as intervention line tested

BOJ to check effects of rate hike amid weak yen at policy meeting

Japan’s inflation slows to 2.6% in March but rate hike still likely