Yen Plummets After Bessent Rules Out Currency Intervention

The yen sank against the dollar after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the US is “absolutely not” intervening in the market for Japan’s currency.

Bessent’s comments sent the yen sharply lower against the dollar, halting a three-day rally. Meanwhile, the greenback rallied as Bessent reiterated that the US always has a preference for a strong currency, in a CNBC interview.

The move adds to a volatile week in the currency market, including a sharp selloff in the dollar on Tuesday after President Donald Trump said he’s not concerned with a weaker greenback. That also came amid mounting speculation that US and Japanese officials may intervene to prop up the yen.

“The bigger picture for the yen is bullish regardless of whether there is intervention or not,” said Elias Haddad , global head of markets strategy at Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. “Worries over Japan fiscal profligacy are overdone given that growth comfortably exceeds borrowing costs.”

The dollar’s gains chipped away at this week’s losses, with the Bloomberg’s dollar index sinking to the lowest level in almost four years. The slump helped push both the euro and pound to the strongest levels since 2021, while the Swiss franc reached the highest since 2015. In Asia, the South Korean won and Malaysian ringgit led gains against the US currency. Gold surged to a new record above $5,300 an ounce.