Bessent Presses BOJ for Rate Hike Before Crucial Meeting

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently met with Japan's Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama and Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda to discuss monetary policy. According to NHK, citing an interview with a U.S. official, Bessent urged the BOJ to raise interest rates before its upcoming September 17-18 meeting.

The discussion took place on the margins of the Group of 20 finance ministers and central bank governors' meeting in North Carolina. Erin Browne, Treasury's under secretary for international affairs, provided the account of the meeting and said Bessent urged Japan to make clear to markets that it is paving the way to put public finances on a sustainable footing.

The BOJ's potential rate hike has been a topic of speculation since the U.S. and Japan jointly intervened in the foreign-exchange market after the BOJ's late-July meeting. The value of Japan's interventions reached ¥15.4 trillion ($96.4 billion) over the past month, the highest on record.