Tag - currencies

 
 

CURRENCIES

Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama has repeatedly warned that the government stands ready to take decisive action against the weakening of the yen.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 30, 2026
Yen hits 40-year low against the dollar and breaks ¥162
The currency finally broke through the ¥161.96 mark against the dollar in New York before breaching ¥162 on Tuesday in Tokyo.
The yen has been trading well within intervention territory for about a week.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 26, 2026
Yen’s decline makes perfect sense to some analysts
They have started to wonder whether there is really much at all holding the currency up.
New U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh holds a news conference after a Federal Open Market Committee meeting in Washington on June 17.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 25, 2026
Warsh Fed era heralds a new trial for Asian currencies
The Warsh era has arrived. In his first news conference, the chair described it as a new chapter for the Fed. Asia needs to read in quickly.
Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama attends a budget committee session in April.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 23, 2026
Katayama-Bessent call pulls yen back as it approaches four-decade low
The currency strengthened so fast that some traders suspected that intervention was underway.
The European Union will move one step closer on Tuesday to creating a digital euro when EU lawmakers hold a long-awaited vote on the virtual currency.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 23, 2026
EU looks to digital euro to cut reliance on U.S. payment technology
European officials often point to Washington’s 2025 sanctions against International Criminal Court judges to illustrate the grip of U.S. firms.
The yen is near 39-year lows again and has been trading above ¥160 to the dollar for about a week.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 22, 2026
Yen continues to test fresh lows as Nikkei 225 hits new highs
Verbal intervention in the currency market has been more tempered than in the past.
The yen traded above the ¥161-to-the-dollar mark all day Friday in Tokyo.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 19, 2026
Yen nears four-decade low, and Katayama issues warning
The finance minister’s comments were not as strong as those made in April before intervention.
The Nikkei 225 stock average broke 71,000 for the first time on Thursday while the yen remained weak.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 18, 2026
Yen hits 23-month low and Nikkei 225 breaks 71,000 for first time
Japan’s currency is now well within the range considered by many investors to be the red line for intervention.
Japan is home to 27 registered crypto exchange providers, including BitFlyer.
BUSINESS
Jun 11, 2026
Japan moves to regulate crypto like stocks in market growth push
The bill would classify crypto assets as financial instruments, making them subject to lower taxes and stricter trading rules and opening the door to new products like ETFs.
India’s central bank has often been seen intervening just before onshore open to ease pressure on the rupee.
BUSINESS
Jun 11, 2026
Asia’s currency fight moves offshore as central banks push back
Policymakers have ramped up efforts to curb offshore forex speculation as high oil prices, foreign fund exodus and a strong dollar pressure regional currencies.
The yen is back above ¥160 to the dollar, considered by some investors to be a red line for Japanese authorities.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 8, 2026
Yen lingers above ¥160 to the dollar ahead of BOJ meeting
Japan’s currency lost all the gains from the last intervention in about a month.
Vice Finance Minister for International Affairs Atsushi Mimura speaks to reporters in Tokyo on May 1 following reports of Japan's possible intervention in the currency market.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 5, 2026
Japan likely sold Treasurys to fund yen intervention
Treasury sales may not go down well in Washington where officials have become increasingly focused on the stability of the U.S. government bond market.
The won fell on Wednesday and was a whisker away from 1,536.95 per dollar, the lowest level since 2009.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 4, 2026
South Korea pledges action to curb volatility as won nears 2009 low
South Korea joins authorities in Indonesia and the Philippines in stepping up measures to defend currencies as elevated oil prices hurt the region’s importers.
The yen has remained weak since the last government intervention a month ago.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 3, 2026
Yen back at ¥160 to the dollar about a month after massive intervention
The currency is now near the level that some traders believe is the red line for the government and will lead to another major effort to prop up the currency.
Passersby walk past a screen displaying the Nikkei share average and current yen exchange rate against the U.S. dollar outside a brokerage in Tokyo on Monday.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 30, 2026
Japan used record $73.6 billion to support yen over past month
Finance Ministry data for the month from April 28 to Wednesday showed a total intervention of ¥11.73 trillion ($73.6 billion) over a period marked by several spikes in the yen.
As U.S.-backed stablecoins move closer to widespread global adoption, China is preparing to counter growing dollar dominance by expanding the digital yuan and cross-border payment systems in emerging markets.
COMMENTARY / World
May 28, 2026
China will fight back if digital dollars corner global savings
Anything that entrenches the U.S. currency’s hegemony in countries like Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Turkey, Egypt or Sudan goes against China’s strategic interest.
Beijing on May 13. Even as the yuan strengthened, exports from China hit another record in April, with about half of export growth coming from semiconductors and computers, while traditional categories such as clothing and furniture were flat or shrinking.
BUSINESS / Tech
May 28, 2026
World’s appetite for AI makes China less afraid of stronger yuan
Even as the yuan climbed to its strongest level since 2023 and the economy looked more fragile, policymakers have shown little urgency to step in.
India has appealed to citizens to drop overseas trips and avoid gold purchases to protect a rupee that is among the world's ​biggest losers since war in the Middle East reduced crude supplies.
BUSINESS / Markets / ANALYSIS
May 22, 2026
Asia’s currencies are flashing the oil shock alarm
Asia buys about 80% of oil shipped through the Strait of Hormuz, and stress in foreign exchange markets is one of the clearest signs of rising fuel prices starting to hurt growth.
The war in Iran is fueling currency crises in energy-importing countries, underscoring the need to accelerate the transition to electric vehicles and renewable energy to shield economies from fossil-fuel shocks.
COMMENTARY / World
May 18, 2026
The energy crisis is becoming a currency crisis
The biggest losers include the Egyptian pound, the Philippine peso, the South Korean won and the Thai baht.
An electronic screen displays the yen exchange rate against the U.S. dollar, euro and other foreign currencies in Tokyo on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 16, 2026
Curious yen spikes have traders gaming Japan ‘warning shots’
Investors and strategists are debating whether Japanese authorities are trying to stem further weakness in the yen through smaller operations.

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival