US and Japan Join Forces to Halt Yen's Historic Slide

Japan's Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama is expected to announce on Monday that Tokyo and Washington jointly intervened in the currency market last week to support the yen, which has been sliding to 40-year lows.

The intervention marks a rare bilateral coordination between the two countries and could signal a turning point for the currency. Market sources say Japan and the US made rounds of yen purchases together, with Tokyo selling as much as $58.97 billion in New York markets on Thursday, according to Bank of Japan data.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had previously said the yen 'seems very undervalued' and had a handwritten note at a cabinet meeting saying 'Buy Japanese Yen (JPY) $5-10 bil'. The US Treasury also told banks it might intervene in the yen market, further fueling speculation.

The intervention comes as Japan struggles to curb a relentless drop in the yen, which has pushed up import prices and stoked broader inflation. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's public approval ratings have taken a hit due to the economic woes.