Japan Records Record $50.36 Billion Intervention as Yen Stands at 158.469
Key Facts
Japan’s Finance Ministry disclosed details on Nov. 9 of a record 7.98 trillion yen, or $50.36 billion, foreign exchange intervention carried out on July 30, Reuters reported. The operation surpassed the previous daily record of 6.28 trillion yen on April 30. The release of the data again highlights Tokyo’s efforts to curb the currency’s weakness, as EL7 data showed the dollar closing at 158.469 yen on Nov. 6. Reuters had described the July operation as the largest on a daily basis. Details of the intervention were disclosed as China’s October inflation figures were released, bringing together currency pressures and divergent price trends in Asia.
A comparison of exchange-rate levels cited in Associated Press coverage shows the dollar was trading above 163 yen in late July before falling to about 155.20 yen after the intervention was confirmed on Aug. 3. It then reached 156.70 yen in early trading on Monday Eastern Time, the agency reported. These levels show the scale of the move that followed the operation, while the dollar stood at 158.469 yen at the Nov. 6 close, according to EL7 data. This path places Japan’s intervention in the context of efforts to limit the yen’s weakness against the dollar. Comparisons of the figures remain tied to the specified dates for each exchange-rate level.
In China, the consumer price index rose 0.7% year on year in October, compared with a 0.9% increase in September, Reuters reported, citing data republished from the National Bureau of Statistics. The reading was below economists’ expectations of 0.8%, according to a poll cited by Reuters. By contrast, the producer price index accelerated to an annual increase of 5.7%, from 5.0% in September, exceeding expectations for a 5.3% rise. Producer prices increased 0.7% month on month in October, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. The figures show a divergence between slowing consumer inflation and accelerating producer prices in the same month.
For the period from January to October, average producer prices rose 2.7% year on year, according to China’s National Bureau of Statistics. Prices of mining and quarrying products recorded an annual increase of 27.9% in October. In the opposite direction, prices of daily consumer goods fell 0.1% year on year during the month. These movements highlight differing price trends across production sectors and everyday goods, alongside the annual consumer inflation reading of 0.7%. The figures were included in China’s inflation report published on Nov. 9, while each percentage change refers to October or the specified cumulative period.
The United States confirmed the Japanese intervention on Aug. 3, according to Associated Press coverage, after the dollar fell from above 163 yen in late July to around 155.20 yen. The dollar subsequently stood at 156.70 yen in early trading on Monday Eastern Time, the agency reported. The latest exchange-rate level among the figures available here was 158.469 yen per dollar at the Nov. 6 close, according to EL7 data. These successive readings provide a timeline for the July 30 operation, which amounted to a record 7.98 trillion yen. Japan’s Finance Ministry published details of the daily operation on Nov. 9.
Attention after the price data is turning to the meeting of Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation leaders scheduled in Shenzhen on Nov. 18 and 19, according to China’s State Council. U.S. President Donald Trump said he believed he would meet Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin at the summit, according to a Reuters report. The report added that Trump said the talks would address ending the war with Iran and nuclear disarmament. The meeting comes after China’s inflation data were published on Nov. 9, as markets continue to monitor the yen. Shenzhen is scheduled to host the APEC economic leaders’ meeting on the specified dates.