Japan’s Finance Minister Vows Action as Yen Breaches 160 per Dollar

TOKYO, Nov. 13 (Reuters) — Japan’s government said it would respond appropriately to currency volatility, with Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama warning on Friday that the yen had briefly crossed the key 160-per-dollar threshold.

“Recent movements in the foreign exchange market have been one-sided and rapid,” Katayama said at a regular news conference. “We will continue to work closely with the U.S. Treasury and respond appropriately,” she added.

The yen fell to as low as 160.03 per dollar, crossing 160 for the first time since early September before the move drew swift government attention, following a hawkish reassessment of the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate path.

Katayama’s remarks followed a similar warning from top currency diplomat Atsushi Mimura on Thursday, who said it was “too early to forget” this summer’s intervention.

Japan last conducted interventions on three days between July 30 and August 3, spending a record total of ¥15.4 trillion ($96.47 billion), as the Japanese currency reached its weakest levels in four decades near ¥164 per dollar.

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s quarterly report on currency market operations released Thursday said it bought ¥79.4 billion in the spot market on July 31, selling euros from the Exchange Stabilization Fund.

The purchase was the first U.S. yen-buying intervention since 1998, and the report showed that Washington acted alongside Tokyo to support the Japanese currency.

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