Yen Crashes Below 160 per Dollar After Fed Chair Hints at Rate Hike

The Japanese yen briefly fell below 160 per U.S. dollar on Friday in New York for the first time since Japan conducted coordinated yen-buying with the United States in late July.

The decline came after Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh's speech in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, where he left the door open for a potential interest rate hike if inflation is not kept in check. Warsh said 'We must be confident that underlying inflation is moving to our objective, clearly and at sufficient speed. Otherwise, we have work to do.'

The yen's depreciation against the dollar in recent years is partly attributable to U.S.-Japan interest rate differentials.