Bessent Backs BOJ Rate Hike, Confident in Ueda's Economic Leadership

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent expressed confidence in Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda's ability to make the right economic decisions for Japan, according to public broadcaster NHK.

In an interview with NHK, Bessent attributed some of Japan's inflation uptick to the weak yen and energy prices, saying that as these factors improve, Japan's inflation will slow down and the economy will 'go into a virtuous cycle.'

This statement comes after Bessent called for higher Japanese interest rates in previous comments, which heightens the chance of an interest rate hike by the BOJ at its next policy meeting on September 17-18.

Bessent also mentioned that he would meet Ueda before the BOJ's policy meeting and noted that the joint yen-buying intervention between Japan and the United States is aimed at preventing the currency's weakness from spreading instability across Asian currencies.