Katayama, Bessent Affirm Importance of Orderly Yen Movements

Asheville, North Carolina, Aug. 31 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama and U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent affirmed the importance of orderly yen movements during a meeting in Asheville, North Carolina, on Monday, Katayama said. The two ministers confirmed that “orderly yen movements are indispensable for the stability of U.S. and global financial markets,” Katayama told reporters after the meeting on the sidelines of a gathering of the Group of 20 finance ministers and central bank chiefs. “The continuous and coordinated efforts of Japan and the United States serve a common purpose,” she added, indicating that Tokyo would not hesitate to take further action, if necessary, to support the Japanese currency. It was their first meeting since Japanese and U.S. authorities carried out concerted currency market intervention to prop up the yen in late July. Bessent also held talks with Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda, according to people familiar with the matter. Katayama and Bessent reaffirmed the significance of concerted currency market intervention. The Japanese finance chief explained to her counterpart that Japan aims to stably reduce the ratio of its debt to its gross domestic product, and to secure funding for a consumption tax cut without relying on deficit-covering bonds. Bessent did not make any objections, she said. “We had very good talks with Bessent about future cooperation,” Atsushi Mimura, Japanese vice finance minister for international affairs, said. Although the yen briefly strengthened against the dollar after the Japanese-U.S. intervention, it has since weakened to around 160 per dollar again. The U.S. government has repeatedly called on the BOJ to swiftly raise interest rates amid concerns that the weak yen and falling prices for Japanese government bonds may spur selling of U.S. Treasuries. In a post on X shortly after the joint market intervention, Bessent indicated his willingness to meet with Ueda on the sidelines of the G20 meeting. The Japanese central bank may raise interest rates as soon as at its next monetary policy meeting in September, analysts said. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]