The Bank of Japan is seen in Tokyo on September 20, 2023.
17:32 JST, August 1, 2024
Tokyo, July 31 (Jiji Press) — Japan spent ¥5.534.8 billion on foreign exchange interventions between June 27 and Monday, the Finance Ministry said Wednesday.
The dollar fell against the yen on July 11 and 12, leading to speculation that Japanese authorities were secretly buying and selling yen worth a total of ¥5 trillion to ¥6 trillion.
Before the latest interventions, Japanese authorities intervened in the currency markets in April-May, spending ¥9.7 trillion to support the yen, while the dollar rose above ¥160 on April 29.
Stealth interventions, where authorities do not immediately disclose whether they have entered the currency markets, aim to increase the effectiveness of the operations by creating uncertainty in the market about their timing.
The total amount spent on interventions in the latest month-long period was first disclosed in Wednesday’s announcement. Details of how much was spent on which day will be published in early November, along with data for August and September.
The dollar fell from around ¥161 to around ¥157 on July 11, shortly after the release of the U.S. consumer price index for June, and from around ¥159 to around ¥157 the next day, after the release of the U.S. producer price index.
Market participants estimate that Japanese authorities spent about 3 to 4 trillion yen on July 11 and about 2 trillion yen on July 12 to support the yen against the dollar.
On July 11, Masato Kanda, then Japan’s deputy finance minister for international affairs who was responsible for interventions, told reporters he was “very concerned about steps that deviate from economic fundamentals.” Kanda stepped down from his post on Wednesday.
