Japan's Finance Ministry's Vice Finance Minister for International Affairs Kanda. He is the official who will instruct the BOJ to intervene, when he judges it necessary. Often referred to as Japan's 'top currency diplomat'.
- Recent yen moves are rapid.
- Closely watching FX moves with a high sense of urgency.
- Will take appropriate actions if needed on forex.
- Ready to take action on forex anytime 24 hours all year around just like natural disaster.
- Rapid forex moves could have adverse impact on economy.
- Closely communicating with the Bank of Japan
- Up to the BOJ to decide monetary policy
- FX moves seem to be reflecting both fundamentals and speculative moves
- We perceive the yen's fall by around 10 yen a month as rapid
- suggests appropriate responses to weak yen could include intervention
These comments are a bit of a mixed bag from Kanda.
These are quite aggressive:
- Recent yen moves are rapid.
- Ready to take action on forex anytime 24 hours all year around just like natural disaster.
- Will take appropriate actions if needed on forex.
But this one seems quite weak (the acknowledgement of moving with fundamentals):
- FX moves seem to be reflecting both fundamentals and speculative moves
USD/JPY is down from around 150.60 to 150.50 on his remarks so far.
Masato Kanda
