Japan's new currency diplomat keeps intervention on table to stabilise yen
By Makiko Yamazaki and Takaya Yamaguchi
TOKYO, July 31 (Reuters) -Japan will retain its basic approach on the yen with intervention remaining an option to tackle excessively volatile moves in the exchange rate, the country's new top currency diplomat Atsushi Mimura told Reuters.
"Japan will act under internationally agreed commitments that exchange rates should be determined by markets, but that excessive volatility or disorderly movements can have an adverse impact on economic and financial stability," Mimura said in an interview on Tuesday.
"It has been internationally agreed that measures including interventions are allowed when necessary," he added.
Previously head of the ministry's international bureau, the 57-year-old became vice finance minister for international affairs on Wednesday - a post that oversees Japan's currency policy and coordinates economic policy with other countries.
Mimura's appointment comes as the Japanese currency shows tentative signs of recovery from 38-year lows, as investors unwound their long-running bets against the currency ahead of a Bank of Japan meeting this week.
While a weak yen gives exports a boost, it has become a source of concern for policymakers by pushing up the cost of imports and hurting consumption.
His predecessor, Masato Kanda led massive bouts of yen-buying intervention in 2022 and 2024 during three years in the position and was also known to aggressively warn markets against pushing down the yen.
"A change in vice finance minister for international affairs doesn't mean a change in basic policy for not just foreign exchange but various things as they are decided by the finance ministry as an institution," Mimura said.
He declined to comment on the current market situation, saying that such comments could have an unforeseen impact on markets.
Mimura, meanwhile, hinted at a potential change in the style of communications with markets.
"Communicating with markets is extremely important," he said. "Being always vocal is one style of communication, but not speaking may also be another way of communication. We must avoid creating unnecessary market speculation or uncertainties, but communication can be done both by speaking and not speaking."
Mimura also said the Ministry of Finance will continue cooperating with the Bank of Japan and the financial regulator, the Financial Services Agency, as the three parties need to be on the same page regarding macroeconomic policy.
Mimura said it is true that the yen's effective exchange rates have weakened due to decades of deflation, and the only and natural solution is to improve Japan's economic competitiveness and boost the country's growth potential.
"Areas of growth could not just be limited to traditional manufacturing but also in inbound tourism, pop culture, soft culture and others," he said.
Having spent nearly a third of his 35-year government career at Japan's banking regulator, Mimura has the expertise and international ties in the area of financial regulation.
During his three-year stint at the Bank for International Settlements in Basel, Mimura helped set up the Financial Stability Board in the midst of the 2008-2009 global financial crisis to reform financial regulation and supervision.
Reporting by Makiko Yamazaki and Takaya Yamaguchi; Editing by Jacqueline Wong
Asset collegati
Ultime news
Disclaimer: le entità di XM Group forniscono servizi di sola esecuzione e accesso al nostro servizio di trading online, che permette all'individuo di visualizzare e/o utilizzare i contenuti disponibili sul sito o attraverso di esso; non ha il proposito di modificare o espandere le proprie funzioni, né le modifica o espande. L'accesso e l'utilizzo sono sempre soggetti a: (i) Termini e condizioni; (ii) Avvertenza sui rischi e (iii) Disclaimer completo. Tali contenuti sono perciò forniti a scopo puramente informativo. Nello specifico, ti preghiamo di considerare che i contenuti del nostro servizio di trading online non rappresentano un sollecito né un'offerta ad operare sui mercati finanziari. Il trading su qualsiasi mercato finanziario comporta un notevole livello di rischio per il tuo capitale.
Tutto il materiale pubblicato sul nostro servizio di trading online è unicamente a scopo educativo e informativo, e non contiene (e non dovrebbe essere considerato come contenente) consigli e raccomandazioni di carattere finanziario, di trading o fiscale, né informazioni riguardanti i nostri prezzi di trading, offerte o solleciti riguardanti transazioni che possano coinvolgere strumenti finanziari, oppure promozioni finanziarie da te non richieste.
Tutti i contenuti di terze parti, oltre ai contenuti offerti da XM, siano essi opinioni, news, ricerca, analisi, prezzi, altre informazioni o link a siti di terzi presenti su questo sito, sono forniti "così com'è", e vanno considerati come commenti generali sui mercati; per questo motivo, non possono essere visti come consigli di investimento. Dato che tutti i contenuti sono intesi come ricerche di investimento, devi considerare e accettare che non sono stati preparati né creati seguendo i requisiti normativi pensati per promuovere l'indipendenza delle ricerche di investimento; per questo motivo, questi contenuti devono essere considerati come comunicazioni di marketing in base alle leggi e normative vigenti. Assicurati di avere letto e compreso pienamente la nostra Notifica sulla ricerca di investimento non indipendente e la nostra Informativa sul rischio riguardante le informazioni sopra citate; tali documenti sono consultabili qui.
