Tokyo (Reuters)-Japan does not manipulate the exchange market to weaken yen, finance minister Katsunobu Kato told Parliament on Friday (18), rebutting the accusations of US President Donald Trump that Japan intentionally depreciated its currency to help exporters.
The statements were made before Kato’s scheduled visit to Washington next week, where he will be able to hold a bilateral meeting with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, on the banks of the G20 financial leaders and spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Bilateral conversations, if held, will be the main place where Japan and the US will discuss the thorny exchange rate topic as part of tariff negotiations that began on Wednesday (16).
“Japan does not manipulate the exchange market to intentionally weaken the yen, as seen by the fact that our last action was to carry out a purchase intervention of yen,” Kato told parliamentarians when asked Trump’s comments criticizing Japan for giving his exports a commercial advantage by weakening yen.
Although he has said he is aware that the US is interested in discussing foreign exchange issues, Kato refused to comment on what could be debated. He also said that a date for the possible meeting with Bessent has not yet been set.
Iene’s recent gains have been driven in part by market expectations that the US can press Japan to participate in coordinated effort to weaken the dollar and help reduce its huge commercial deficit.
