Two government officials from the United States and Japan convened in Tokyo, Japan, yesterday regarding the concerns involving the Japanese yen and the foreign exchange market.
This development took place following the latest plummeting in the value of Japan’s official currency amid global inflation, rising fuel prices, and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine armed conflict.
We are pleased to read this news about the United States and Japan’s government officials meeting to discuss foreign exchange-related matters involving the two nations’ official exchange modes.
We believe that this report will relieve our readers who may be adversely affected by a nosediving Japanese yen and enlighten our readers holding US dollar units.
According to the news posted online by Japanese news source Nippon.com, Andrew Baukol and Masato Kanda are the two senior government officials from the United States and Japan, respectively, who convened with each other yesterday, Tuesday, March 29.
Kanda is Japan’s vice finance minister for international affairs and top currency diplomat, while Baukol is the acting undersecretary of the United States Department of the Treasury. According to Kanda, foreign exchange rates’ stability is significant.
After meeting with the US Treasury official, he pointed out that fast moves in this aspect are undesirable. Japan’s chief currency diplomat also stated that the governments of the United States and Japan would closely communicate with each other regarding the foreign exchange market.
Kanda cited that Japan would respond properly based on a globally shared perspective that the market should determine the foreign-exchange rates. He added that disorderly and excessive moves in exchange rates could harm the countries’ economic and financial stability.
The two government officials from the United States and Japan met amid a tense stage for the Japanese yen. The US dollar spurted to surpass 125 Japanese yen last Monday, March 28 and for the first-ever time in six years and seven months.
At the time of writing, US$1 is equivalent to 121.86 Japanese yen, per Xe.com, with the Japanese currency showing a slight recovery, compared to the 123 to 125 Japanese yen recorded early this week.
Kanda remarked that the Japanese yen, in particular, moved noticeably. He said that they would closely monitor the movements in the foreign exchange market, like the official currency of Japan’s recent depreciation and its effects on the Japanese economy.
Japan’s vice finance minister for international affairs relayed this message, adding that his group would perform these measures with a sense of tension. Kanda and Baukol also agreed to maintain previous agreements by the Group of Seven major countries, which comprise the United States and Japan.
This mutual accord pertains to the viewpoint that excessive volatility and disorderly moves in exchange rates can badly affect nations’ financial and economic stability. We are glad about the latest meeting of two senior government officials from the United States and Japan, Minister Masato Kanda and Undersecretary Andrew Baukol.
Based on our foreign exchange news about the Japanese yen yesterday, we have seen this incident coming in which a Japanese government official would feel worried about the Japanese yen falling sharply.
We think Minister Kanda and Undersecretary Baukol’s meeting in Tokyo this week was exigent. Following the meeting of these two government officials from the United States and Japan tackling the recent foreign exchange market developments, we hope the Japanese people will have some relief in the coming days.
After all, the two Japanese and US currency authorities have agreed to closely communicate with each relating to foreign exchange matters and implement what is best for their nations’ people, currency-wise.