Japan and US confirm rare joint intervention to prop up yen

What the report says

Japan and the United States have confirmed a rare coordinated effort to buy yen and slow the Japanese currency’s decline, according to Al Jazeera’s report citing statements from Japan’s Finance Ministry and US officials. The move came after the yen had fallen to four-decade lows, prompting concern in Tokyo about higher import costs and broader inflation pressures.

US President Donald Trump said the support was a sign of friendship and aimed at helping the global economy. Japan’s finance ministry said the joint action was intended to counter what it called excessive volatility and disorderly movements in the yen. It also indicated that Tokyo remains in close contact with the US Treasury and could take further joint action if needed.

The report said the dollar weakened briefly after Trump’s comments before recovering, while analysts viewed the intervention as an effort to limit wider market spillovers from a sell-off in the yen and Japanese government bonds. The article also noted that US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent backed Japan’s steps and again pressed for higher Japanese interest rates.

According to the report, this was the first coordinated US-Japan intervention since 2011. It comes after earlier Japanese efforts to support the yen in April and May had only short-lived effects, and after the Bank of Japan recently signaled the possibility of an early rate hike while keeping policy unchanged.