Yen spikes fuel speculation Japan is testing intervention warnings near 160 per dollar

The yen’s repeated intraday surges against the dollar are fueling speculation that Japanese authorities may be using small-scale operations or signals to deter traders from pushing USD/JPY back above 160. The yen jumped as much as 0.5% in two minutes during New York trading on May 14 before reversing, echoing a similar move on May 12 and a brief 0.2% rise on May 8. Japan has not confirmed intervention, and there have been no clear rate-check reports or Bank of Japan data signals tied to the latest moves. The activity follows reported yen-buying around April 30, with BOJ account analysis suggesting Japan may have spent about 10 trillion yen during the Golden Week holiday. The yen traded at 158.58 per dollar on May 15, weaker than its May 6 high of 155.04. Goldman Sachs estimates Japan could repeat late-April scale intervention about 30 more times, though it expects selective use of reserves.