US Treasury Plans $5-10 Billion Yen Intervention After Currency Surges
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent inadvertently revealed plans to buy $5-10 billion in Japanese yen during a cabinet meeting at Camp David on Friday. The plan was scribbled on a 'to-do' list left visible to a Reuters photographer, showing the underscored words 'To Do' followed by 'Buy Japanese Yen (JPY) $5-10 bil'.
Bessent's name card was positioned immediately above the notepad, and the photograph was taken at 11:33 am local time. A treasury spokesperson did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on the contents of the notepad.
The plan comes after Japanese authorities stepped in to prop up the yen earlier on Friday, triggering a substantial strengthening of the Japanese currency during early trading hours. The US dollar dropped from about 158.9 yen at around 4:14 pm ET to about 157.6 yen just before 5 pm, a drop of about 0.8%.
The US Treasury has not intervened in the yen market since 2011, when it joined other G7 countries in a coordinated action after a devastating earthquake and tsunami rocked Japan.