Overview
- Ministry of Finance data show zero FX spending from Dec. 29 to Jan. 28, confirming reliance on verbal warnings.
- Bank of Japan money market figures did not display the large outflows typically associated with direct intervention.
- Reports of rate checks in Tokyo and Washington remain unconfirmed as Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama and top diplomat Atsushi Mimura decline comment.
- The yen traded around 153.79 per dollar after a Jan. 23 jump of about 1.7% following a BOJ decision.
- Tokyo retains $1.16 trillion in reserves as currency volatility intensifies ahead of the Feb. 8 snap election.