Tag - forex

 
 

FOREX

Sanae Takaichi, newly elected leader of the Liberal Democratic Party, speaks during a news conference at the party's headquarters in Tokyo on Saturday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Oct 5, 2025
Takaichi's win to support Japanese stocks but weigh on yen and bonds
Bank stocks will likely struggle on expectations rate hikes will be pushed back, while domestic demand and small-cap shares may get a "significant tailwind," experts say.
James Baker speaks at the funeral service for former U.S. President George Bush in Houston in December 2018. As Treasury secretary in 1985, he was the key U.S. negotiator of the Plaza Accord, the landmark deal to weaken the dollar and realign global currencies.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 22, 2025
Why the Plaza Accord is still the gold standard
Rather than grieve Plaza, salute it. The deal reflected a confluence of national interest, diplomatic nous and a sense that common interests dictated collaboration.
The Plaza Hotel in New York, where finance ministers and central bank chiefs from the Group of Five countries met and struck the Plaza Accord on Sept. 22, 1985.
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 21, 2025
40 years after Plaza Accord, Japan still at mercy of forex swings
Monday marks the 40th anniversary of the accord, struck between Japan, the U.S., the U.K., France and what was then West Germany.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Japanese Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato reaffirmed in a joint statement their commitment to allowing markets to determine currency exchange rates and not targeting them for competitive advantage.
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 12, 2025
U.S. and Japan pledge not to manipulate forex for competitive advantage
Tokyo has spent close to $150 billion in the last three years trying to prop up the yen with the last move in July last year.
Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 1, 2025
Japan’s Kato voices concern with yen at weakest since March
Kato’s comments came after the yen slid past the 150 level against the dollar on Thursday, following the BOJ’s decision to leave interest rates unchanged.
The Finance Ministry said on Thursday that surplus in the Japanese government's foreign exchange special account stood at a record high of ¥5.36 trillion at the end of fiscal 2024.
BUSINESS
Jul 31, 2025
Japan's forex special account logs record-high surplus
The ministry will transfer ¥3.2 trillion out of the surplus to the general account of the government's fiscal 2025 budget.
Trading volumes in dollar-yen call options, which gain in value if the yen depreciates against the dollar, more than doubled those of put options on July 11.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 14, 2025
Yen traders revamp option bets ahead of Japan election
Expectations that the election outcome may pave the way for additional fiscal stimulus have already started to drive long-term Japanese yields higher.
The yen-dollar exchange rate is displayed outside a securities firm in Tokyo on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 10, 2025
Japan unlikely to face U.S. pressure to strengthen yen, ex-top FX diplomat says
Masatsugu Asakawa was deeply involved in Japan's trade and currency negotiations with the U.S. when he was vice finance minister for international affairs.
The Government Pension Investment Fund suffered a loss in the January-March quarter as a global trade war due to higher U.S. tariffs hurt equities and the outlook for interest-rate cuts dragged down the dollar against the yen.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jul 4, 2025
GPIF logs $61 billion loss as weak dollar hits overseas assets
The pension fund incurred losses on all four of its asset classes in the January-March period, the first time this has occurred since July-September 2022.
The U.S. dollar was back at multiyear lows against a basket of other major currencies on Thursday, erasing a brief respite provided by safe-haven flows related to Middle East tensions earlier in the week.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 27, 2025
No love for the dollar as markets fret about Fed independence
Respect for independent institutions such as central banks has long been viewed as a key attraction of major economies, helping anchor economic stability.
Nomura Holdings predicts the dollar to trade around ¥136 by the end of September, against around ¥145 currently.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 8, 2025
Nomura flags risk of sharp yen rally on U.S.-Japan policy pressure
The investment bank, among Japan’s largest, now recommends shorting the greenback versus the yen, targeting a move in the pair to ¥136 by the end of September.
Despite doubts and talk of alternatives in Asia and beyond, the dollar remains dominant because there are no viable rivals and it continues to serve as the world’s key safe asset.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 3, 2025
The problem with Asia's ‘sell America’ moment
The region’s currencies are enjoying a healthy rally. History warns against anti-dollar triumphalism.
Japan’s biggest life insurers collectively lowered bullish yen wagers tied to their foreign investment holdings, a move that suggests they see a lower likelihood of the yen showing the kind of strength it did in the past.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 30, 2025
Japanese life insurers cut bullish yen hedges to 14-year low
Nine of Japan’s biggest life insurers collectively lowered bullish yen wagers tied to their foreign investment holdings to 44.4% at the end of March from 45.2% six months earlier.
Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato and U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent are expected to hold bilateral talks on the sidelines of a G7 finance leaders' gathering to be held this week in Canada.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 20, 2025
Japan’s Kato plans Bessent meet to discuss topics including FX
The yen gained to as much as ¥144.73 against the dollar following Kato’s remark, after trading around ¥145.50 earlier in the morning.
Brazilian real and a U.S. dollar notes are seen in this illustration taken on Dec. 18, 2024
BUSINESS / Markets
May 20, 2025
Dollar set for more weakness as 'Brand USA' falls further out of favor
Investors see the currency losing more of its luster as the greenback comes back to earth from lofty valuations.
Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato has said he will seek an opportunity for currency talks with his U.S. counterpart Scott Bessent this week.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 19, 2025
Hedge funds reload long yen trades ahead of Kato-Bessent meeting
Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato said he will seek an opportunity for currency talks with his U.S. counterpart, Scott Bessent, this week.
The yen slumped more than 2% on Monday alone, nearing ¥150 to the dollar, after the U.S. and China temporarily lowered tariffs, triggering a reversal of bearish dollar bets.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 15, 2025
Rich Japanese still fear yen crash, wealth manager says
Japan's most prosperous households are still scarred by the market’s collapse in the early 1990s.
South Korean 50,000 won banknotes are prepared at the Bank of Korea headquarters ahead of the Lunar New Year in Seoul on Jan. 14.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 12, 2025
Seeking emerging currency bargains, investors take fresh look at Asia
Asian currencies are finding their cheapness has become an asset as traders seek to capitalize on the dollar’s eroding premium status.
Since U.S. President Donald Trump's return to the White House, the greenback is down more than 9% against a basket of major currencies as investors pull back from owning U.S. assets.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 8, 2025
Ukraine considers shift from dollar to euro amid geopolitical realignments
"This work is complex and requires high-quality, versatile preparation," Central Bank Gov. Andriy Pyshnyi said.
The Tokyo Stock Exchange in Tokyo. Recent market turmoil drove investors to the yen as a haven asset, meaning foreign investors that put money into shares of Japanese importers will reap two benefits at once: yen gains and improved earnings at these businesses.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 7, 2025
Top-performing Orbis fund doubles holdings in Japanese stocks
Japanese stocks made up 24% of the $3 billion Orbis International Equity fund as of end-April, up from just 10% four months earlier.

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