Just as it did with Javier Milei’s government last year, Washington carried out a coordinated action with Japan to prop up the value of the yen, which in recent days hit its lowest point in 40 years.

The operation —which involved a massive purchase of yen— pushed up the value of the Japanese currency and put pressure on the Japanese stock market. On Monday, the Nikkei 225 fell 1.02%.

“We will not hesitate to conduct further coordinated intervention,” Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama told reporters on Monday.

The yen jumped more than 1%, to 155.20 per dollar after the announcement — its highest level since early May, and far from the four-decade low of nearly 164 it reached last month. It currently trades at 156.66 per dollar.

The joint action was the first since the coordinated operation of 2011, after Japan’s devastating earthquake. According to estimates by the bank ING, “the Japanese probably sold US$70 – US$80 billion over the last three days” to keep their currency from depreciating further.

“Why now? Perhaps US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had felt that the weak yen was undermining JGBs, which, in turn, was weighing on Treasuries,” the Dutch bank’s experts........

© Buenos Aires Herald