Japan and US Reportedly Took Joint Action to Counter Yen's Slide

Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama is expected to announce on Monday that Tokyo and Washington undertook joint action in the currency market to halt the yen's depreciation, which had reached 40-year lows. Sources indicate the operation is ongoing, with Japan having bought yen for dollars in New York trading hours on Thursday, selling as much as $58.97 billion. This marks the first joint intervention since 2011 and follows the Bank of Japan's decision on Friday to keep monetary policy steady while signaling a potential rate hike soon. The intervention aims to combat excessive yen declines, driven by widening rate differentials with the U.S.