The yen fell to a fresh 34-year low against the dollar after the Bank of Japan indicated monetary policy will stay easy, heightening speculation authorities may soon intervene in the market to stop the currency’s decline.
Japan’s currency weakened as much as 1.4% on the day and touched a session low of ¥157.79 per dollar in afternoon trading in New York. The decline followed a policy meeting from the BOJ, in which the central bank kept its key interest rate unchanged and Gov. Kazuo Ueda said little to support the currency during a news conference.
Losses deepened even after a gauge of underlying U.S. inflation matched expectations, tempering concerns of persistent price pressures that could delay rate cuts from the Federal Reserve.