Finance Minister Masajuro Shiokawa will hold bilateral talks with U.S. Treasury Secretary Paul O'Neill in Washington on Saturday before attending a meeting the same day of finance ministers and central banks governors from the Group of Seven major economic powers.
Vice Finance Minister Toshiro Muto said talks may include foreign exchange situations. Japan has been concerned about the relative strength of the yen, which has been weighing heavily on Japan's export-based economy.
Finance Minister Masajuro Shiokawa told a news conference earlier this week that Japan is ready to conduct foreign exchange intervention alone in a bid to counter any rapid rise against the dollar.