Japan and the United States conducted a coordinated purchase of yen on Friday, marking the first joint foreign exchange intervention between the two countries in 15 years, Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama confirmed.
The move came as the yen has been persistently weakening against the U.S. dollar, putting pressure on Japan's economy, which is heavily dependent on imports of energy and raw materials.
Minister Katayama said the two nations are ready to take additional measures if the situation develops unfavorably, though she did not disclose details on the scale of the intervention or subsequent timelines.
This is the first joint currency intervention between Japan and the United States since 2011, when the two countries coordinated action to curb the rapid appreciation of the yen following the major earthquake and tsunami disaster.
Asian financial markets reacted immediately to the news, causing the USD/yen exchange rate to cool considerably during the weekend trading session. Analysts suggest that the involvement of two major economies will have a stronger effect than unilateral action by Japan alone.
