Japan's Record-Breaking Yen Intervention Falls Short of Reversing Currency's Downtrend

Japan's Ministry of Finance (MOF) revealed that the country conducted its largest-ever single-day yen-buying intervention in April, selling $40 billion of its currency reserves. The massive operation on April 30 surpassed the previous record set on April 29, 2024, by over $1 billion.

The MOF's quarterly data showed that authorities intervened on three days from April 30 through May 6, when market liquidity was thin due to Golden Week public holidays. This latest intervention helped lift the yen from a near two-year low of 160.725 per dollar to around 155 by May 6.

However, the currency's broader downtrend continued, prompting Japan to intervene again last week in coordination with the U.S. The central bank data indicated that Japan may have spent as much as $58.97 billion on July 30 and $36.58 billion on the following day in potentially the largest-ever yen-buying intervention.