Yen tumbles to two-decade low
The yen hit its lowest level against the dollar in two decades on Wednesday, extending recent falls as the gap widens between Japan's ultra-loose monetary policy and US tightening.
Despite being traditionally considered a safe-haven currency, uncertainty fuelled by the war in Ukraine has not caused the yen to strengthen.
Instead, moves by the US Federal Reserve towards a more aggressive policy and the shock of rising oil prices in Japan - a major importer of fossil fuels - have pushed the currency lower, analysts say.
The drop came after the Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda warned the recent rise in inflation driven by higher import costs could hurt the economy, stressing the central bank's resolve to keep monetary policy ultra-loose.
"The outlook, however, remains highly uncertain due to the impact of the pandemic, as well as developments regarding Ukraine and the impact on commodity prices," Kuroda said in a speech to an annual meeting of trust banks.
He stressed the need to maintain the BOJ's massive stimulus to support an economy yet to recover to pre-pandemic levels.
Finance Minister Shinichi Suzuki jawboned markets against pushing down the yen too much, saying earlier that rapid moves in the yen were "undesirable."
Source: The Standard
https://www.thestandard.com.hk/section- ... decade-low