Japan announced on the 3rd that it conducted a yen-buying intervention jointly with the U.S. government on the 31st.
According to Kyodo News and others, Finance Minister Katayama Satsuki said in a statement the same day that the joint intervention was carried out under the joint statement by the U.S. and Japanese finance ministers announced in September last year.
Katayama said the intervention was "to respond to the recent excessive volatility and disorderly movements of the yen," and, while maintaining close communication with the United States, added, "We will not hesitate to conduct additional joint interventions going forward."
She also said Japan plans to use a Federal Reserve facility that allows it to raise sufficient dollar funding by using U.S. Government Bonds as collateral, even without selling the Government Bonds it holds. The remarks are seen as reflecting concerns that a large sale of U.S. Government Bonds held by Japan could lead to a drop in bond prices and a sharp rise in interest rates.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent also said on X (formerly Twitter) on the 2nd (local time), "We strongly support the Japanese government's resolute market and currency policy measures to correct the significant undervaluation of the yen," acknowledging that the United States joined Japan in market intervention to curb yen weakness.
He said, "The joint foreign-exchange market intervention conducted on July 31 was to respond to disorderly yen volatility," adding, "The Treasury is closely communicating with the Japan Ministry of Finance and the Bank of Japan and is closely monitoring the situation, and will not hesitate to conduct additional joint interventions."
According to major foreign media, on the 31st the U.S. and Japanese authorities unusually intervened jointly in the foreign-exchange market to correct yen weakness. The Japanese government and the Bank of Japan bought yen, while the U.S. Treasury intervened in the market by selling euros and buying yen through the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.