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Mon, 03 Aug 2026

Mon, 03 Aug 2026 US and Japan take action to prop up yen in rare joint move

Both countries have said that they will not hesitate to conduct joint interventions in the future.

* Japan and US jointly intervened in the foreign exchange market last week to halt a slide in the yen, which had weakened to a 40-year low.
* The joint intervention is the first since 2011, when both countries took coordinated action to weaken the yen after the devastating earthquake and tsunami that hit eastern Japan.
* The two countries have confirmed they will intervene again if necessary, with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent saying "we will not hesitate" to conduct more joint interventions in the future.
* Japan's Ministry of Finance said the intervention was aimed at countering excessive volatility and disorderly movements in the yen.
* The yen is historically weak due to Japan's low central bank interest rates compared to other major economies, including the US.
* The Bank of Japan last raised interest rates in June, but the rate remains lower than the US Federal Reserve's benchmark rate.
* Japan faces a decades-long slide in its working-age population, low productivity, and a heavy reliance on energy imports priced in US dollars.