Japan Spends $73.5 Billion on Yen-Buying Intervention, Data Shows

Tokyo spent 11.7 trillion yen ($73.5 billion) on foreign exchange intervention over the past month to prop up the yen, Ministry of Finance data released Friday showed, but the currency remains near the weak levels that triggered the action. The intervention likely occurred on multiple occasions during Japan's Golden Week holidays in late April and early May, when thin liquidity amplified market moves. On April 30, the yen surged from a near two-year low of 160.725 per dollar to as strong as 155.50, before resuming its decline to around 159.65 on Thursday. The yen has been pressured by soaring energy prices tied to the Middle East crisis, delivering a terms-of-trade shock to import-dependent Japan. That has compounded a longer-term weakening trend as the Bank of Japan maintains a cautious pace of monetary normalization after a decade of aggressive stimulus. A detailed daily breakdown of the intervention will be released with April-June quarter data, likely in early August.