Nikkei 225 Falls as Stronger Yen From Rare Joint US-Japan Currency Intervention Hits Exporter Shares
Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 index fell 0.94% on Monday, dropping 607.12 points to close at 63,754.90, as a sharply strengthening yen following a rare coordinated currency intervention between Japan and the United States weighed heavily on the country's export-dependent manufacturers.
Tokyo stocks fell broadly Monday after Tokyo and Washington confirmed they had jointly intervened in currency markets to support the yen, marking the first coordinated U.S.-Japan currency intervention in decades. The move pushed the yen sharply higher, cutting into the competitive advantage that a weaker currency had previously provided to Japan's electronics, automotive and other export-oriented companies, since a stronger yen reduces the value of overseas revenue once converted back into Japanese currency. The Nikkei touched an intraday low of 61,923.50 during the session before recovering somewhat by the close, according to Investing.com data.
President Donald Trump confirmed the U.S. role in the intervention Sunday, describing it as a "signal of friendship" between the two countries after the yen had slid to its weakest level in roughly 40 years. Japan's Ministry of Finance separately confirmed the joint action, saying the yen-buying intervention with the U.S. Treasury Department had been necessary to counter "excessive volatility and disorderly movements" in the currency.........
