The Yen displays weakness as the Bank of Japan (BoJ) refuses to intervene aggresively

Monetary authorities in Japan stated this Friday that the country does not have “a specific defensive line” against the rapid depreciation of the yen, which fell this week to levels not seen since July 1990.

“All measures are possible to curb excessive movements of the yen,” said Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki on Friday at a press conference, where he stated that “there is no specific defensive line” to address the market.

Suzuki’s statements come amid speculations that the Japanese currency could fall below 152 yen per dollar, potentially prompting swift intervention by the government, which typically refrains from confirming such actions.

The yen briefly plummeted to a 34-year low of 151.97 against the dollar in Tokyo last Wednesday. The Japanese currency last dropped to 151.94 in October 2022, before Japan intervened by purchasing yen with dollars.

Since 2022, the yen has been steadily depreciating, causing concern in the country and leading to several monetary interventions by the Japanese government.

This decline has been associated with the divergence between the interest rate hikes in the United States and the monetary policy of the Bank of Japan (BoJ), which maintains the reference rate in negative territory and has favored maintaining its ultra-flexible stimulus measures.

However, in its latest meeting, the BoJ decided to raise short-term reference interest rates to 0.1%, the first such measure in 17 years, and withdraw other stimuli applied within its broad monetary easing program.

A weak yen benefits Japanese companies’ overseas revenue, as their remittances are inflated when repatriated, improving the competitiveness of their products. However, it also negatively impacts national accounts by increasing the cost of imports in a country highly dependent on them.