Japan Finance Minister Fires Off Again on Yen-Trading Concerns
- Aso: Japan will monitor speculative trades, respond as needed
- Appreciation to 18-month high seen undermining inflation
Taro Aso, Japan's deputy prime minister and finance minister.
Photographer: Tomohiro Ohsumi/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso extended his verbal campaign of expressing concern about his nation’s exchange rate after the yen jumped to an 18-month high.
For at least the second time since the U.S. Treasury Department cited Japan on a currency watch list last week, Aso said his government is monitoring speculative trades in the yen and will respond if needed. Japan hasn’t intervened in the foreign-exchange market since 2011, instead sticking to verbal jawboning in a climate where monetary policy has played a bigger role in determining the yen’s value.