History of Japan's intervention in currency markets
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TOKYO, May 1 : Japan's yen rebounded sharply against the U.S. dollar on Thursday after authorities intervened to prop up the embattled currency from near two-year lows.
The yen surged as much as 3 per cent in London trading hours after Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama warned that "decisive" action was approaching. Two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters that officials had intervened to buy the yen after it sank to its weakest level against the dollar since July 2024.
The yen breached 160 against the greenback this week, a level that has previously triggered intervention, as fears of a further escalation in the Middle East conflict lifted oil prices and piled pressure on the Japanese currency.
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The yen's prolonged weakness in part reflects the Bank of Japan's slow retreat from ultra-easy policy. The BOJ on Tuesday held rates steady at 0.75 per cent but signalled a June hike by talking up the risks of an inflation overshoot.
Investors have also been focussed on the country's fiscal health after fiscal dove Sanae Takaichi took office, pledging heavier investment to fuel longer term growth.
Here is a timeline of moves in foreign exchange markets by the finance ministry and BOJ.
April 30, 2026 - The yen jumped as much as 3 per cent to 155.5 yen against the dollar, after weakening to 160.72 earlier in the session, its softest level since July 2024. The move followed Japanese Finance Minister Katayama's remarks that "decisive" action was imminent, while top currency diplomat Atsushi Mimura warned: "This is our final evacuation warning to markets." Two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters Japanese authorities had stepped into the market lift the currency.
July 11-12, 2024 - Japanese authorities spent 5.53 trillion yen ($36.8 billion) intervening in the foreign exchange market, helping the yen jump from as low as 161.76 per dollar to as high as 157.30.
June 26, 2024 - Top currency diplomat Masato Kanda said Japanese authorities were "seriously concerned and on high alert" about the yen's rapid decline, escalating warnings as the currency languished at its weakest level in about 38 years.
April-May, 2024 - Japan conducted a record single-day yen-buying intervention on April 29 after the currency hit 160.245 per dollar, followed by another round of intervention on May 1 for a total of 9.79 trillion yen ($62.23 billion).
March 27, 2024 - Bank of Japan, the Finance Ministry and Japan's Financial Services Agency held a meeting after the yen fell to a 34-year low against the dollar, and suggested they were ready to intervene.
Oct. 21-24, 2022 - Japan used 6.3499 trillion yen ($42.8 billion) on currency intervention to prop up the yen in what was the nation's largest amount of yen-buying, dollar-selling intervention at the time.
Sept. 7, 2022 - Top government spokesman Hirokazu Matsuno expresses concern about "rapid, one-sided" moves seen in the currency market after the yen weakens beyond 143 per dollar.
June 10, 2022 - Japan's government and central bank issue a rare joint statement saying they are concerned by recent sharp falls in the yen after it weakens beyond 134 per dollar.
Aug and Oct., 2011 - Japan intervenes to curb gains that officials fear could derail recovery from an economic slump triggered by a massive earthquake and tsunami on March 11, 2011.
March 18, 2011 - Group of Seven (G7) nations jointly intervene to stem yen strength when the currency spikes to a record high in the aftermath of the earthquake.
Sept. 15, 2010 - Japan intervenes in the currency market for the first time in six years, selling yen to stem a rise in the currency after the dollar hits a 15-year-low at 82.87 yen.
March 2004 - A 15-month campaign to curb the yen's rise comes to an end after Japan has spent 35 trillion yen, or more than $300 billion, on intervention.
May-June, 2002 - The BOJ intervenes to sell yen, often supported by the U.S. Federal Reserve and European Central Bank (ECB). The yen continues to gain.
Sept 2001 - The BOJ intervenes to sell yen after the Sept. 11 attacks in the United States. The ECB and New York Fed operate on behalf of the BOJ.
January 1999 to April 2000 - The BOJ sells yen at least 18 times, including once via the Fed and once via the ECB, due to worries the currency's strength will choke economic recovery. The yen continues to strengthen.
1997 - 1998 - The Asian financial crisis sees the yen weaken, reaching nearly 148 per dollar in August 1998, even after U.S. authorities join the BOJ to buy yen.
April 1994 - August 1995 - The dollar sinks to a record low against the German mark and a post-war low against the yen. The United States intervenes repeatedly, often with Japanese and European central banks, to prop up the greenback.
1993 - The BOJ sells yen through much of the year to curb its strength.
1991 - 1992 - The BOJ intervenes to support the yen, selling U.S. dollars.
1988 - The dollar falls to 120.45 yen on Jan. 4, at that time a post World War Two low. The BOJ intervenes to buy dollars and sell yen.
1987 - In February, six of the G7 nations sign the Louvre Accord, which aims to stabilise currencies and halt the dollar's broad decline.
1985 - The Group of Five industrial nations, the predecessor to the G7, sign the Plaza Accord, in which they agree that the dollar is overvalued and that they will move to weaken it.
1973 - Japanese monetary authorities decide to let the yen float freely against the greenback.
(Compiled by Tom Westbrook, Daniel Leussink, Brigid Riley, and Satoshi Sugiyama; Editing by Vidya Ranganathan, Sam Holmes and Shri Navaratnam)
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