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YEN

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.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 3, 2025
Ishiba meets with BOJ's Ueda to discuss economy and markets
The pair’s first meeting since February suggests Ishiba is trying to show market participants that his government and the BOJ will be coordinating closely.
Mazda Motor posted a consolidated net loss of ¥42.1 billion ($286 million) for the three months to June, its first loss in the fiscal first quarter since 2020.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 6, 2025
Mazda swings to net loss in April-June
The automaker posted a consolidated net loss of ¥42.1 billion for the period as a result of steep U.S. tariffs and a stronger yen.
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.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, also president of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, speaks to reporters at the party's headquarters in Tokyo on Monday. The party’s loss in the July 20 Upper House election has become the defining factor for the yen.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 30, 2025
Yen option traders brace for more weakness ahead of BOJ decision
Analysts warn that Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba may resort to populist spending to shore up support for his weakened coalition.
The University of Tokyo. International students are increasingly flocking to Asia, with affordability being a particularly important metric.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 25, 2025
Tokyo is the No. 2 choice for international students
Amid rising costs of living, affordability is a key factor for students when deciding where to study abroad.
A lack of clarity around fiscal and economic policies is likely to dim the global appeal of Japanese assets, analysts say.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 22, 2025
Japanese bonds remain vulnerable as unpopular Ishiba holds on
Benchmark 10-year bonds fell only slightly as trading resumed in Tokyo, pushing yields up by 1.5 basis points.
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.
Data compiled by the Japan Department Stores Association shows that tax-free inbound sales at over 80 department stores across the country fell by 41% in May from a year earlier.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 3, 2025
Japan’s department store shares lag as tourist splurge slows
Tax-free inbound sales at over 80 department stores across the country fell by 41% in May from a year earlier.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda announces the start of the circulation of new banknotes on July 3, 2024.
BUSINESS
Jun 30, 2025
Japan’s new banknotes see slow adoption one year after launch
Roughly 5 billion new banknotes were in circulation as of the end of May, accounting for just 28.8% of all notes in use.
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.
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.
Economic uncertainty and concern about the Bank of Japan reducing its bond purchases have hit Japanese debt recently, taking the 30-year yield to the highest level since records began in 1999.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 22, 2025
Treasurys vie for demand with Japan’s bonds
Economic uncertainty and concern about the Bank of Japan reducing its bond purchases have hit Japanese debt recently.
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.
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.

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Growing families are being priced out of Tokyo’s condo market, forced to choose between downtown convenience and suburban space.
Is living in central Tokyo still affordable?