Japan is ready to respond to excessive volatility in the currency market, with all options on the table, said Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki, following the yen's recent depreciation.
Suzuki reiterates the government's stance on currency movements, saying currency movements should be stable and reflect economic fundamentals. His new verbal warning sent the yen climbing against the dollar, marking an apparent sign of market nervousness over the possibility of another currency market intervention by Japanese authorities.
Japan's economy has already slipped past the levels at which Japan previously intervened to stem its precipitous fall last year. Suzuki has argued that the government is paying attention to volatility, dismissing the view that it has specific levels in mind when it comes to intervention.
On Suzuki's comments, the dollar dropped into the 146-yen zone before moving back into the 147-yen range.
A policy divergence between the Bank of Japan and the U.S. Federal Reserve makes the yen less attractive than the dollar.
While the BOJ hasn't budged on its stance of continuing with monetary easing, it has been allowing 10-year Japanese bond yields to increase significantly.
The Fed is far ahead of the BOJ by raising interest rates aggressively. Powell has not ruled out further hikes to tamp down inflation.