Japan's Foreign Reserves Plummet Amid Yen-Buying Intervention

Japan's foreign reserves have hit a nearly four-year low due to large-scale yen-buying intervention. The Ministry of Finance reported that ¥15.4 trillion worth of foreign-exchange intervention took place between July 30 and August 26, as authorities moved to support the yen after it weakened sharply.

The country's foreign currency reserves stood at USD 994.98 billion, consisting of USD 839.56 billion in securities and USD 155.42 billion in deposits. Of these deposits, USD 154.98 billion were held with foreign central banks and the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), while deposits with banks headquartered in Japan totaled USD 409 million and those with banks headquartered outside Japan amounted to USD 25 million.

The intervention led to a decline of USD 79.58 billion in Japan's foreign reserves at the end of August 2026, compared to July, making it the lowest level since October 2022. The IMF reserve position stood at USD 11.42 billion, SDR holdings were valued at USD 61.17 billion, and gold reserves totaled USD 124.10 billion.