BOJ’s Ueda meets premier, says didn’t discuss recent yen volatility

By Tetsushi Kajimoto and Leika Kihara

TOKYO (Reuters) -Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda said that he and prime minister Fumio Kishida held talks on Tuesday on economic developments but did not discuss recent volatile currency moves.

The discussions took place in the wake of the dollar’s recent ascent above 145 yen, a level that in September 2022 triggered Japan’s first yen-buying operation since 1998.

“There wasn’t anything in particular discussed today,” Ueda told reporters after the meeting, when asked whether the two held talks on recent exchange-rate volatility.

Ueda also said he explained to Kishida the Bank of Japan’s decision last month to loosen its grip on long-term interest rates. “The premier said he well understood,” Ueda added.

The dollar briefly slid against the yen on news the two were to meet, before bouncing back to around 145.98.

Ueda said Tuesday’s meeting was a continuation of his predecessor Haruhiko Kuroda’s practice of conferring with the premier once every few months on economic and financial developments.

It was the second such meeting since Ueda assumed the top BOJ post in April. The last one was held on April 10, when the two discussed the need to “guide policy flexibly” given uncertainty over the economic outlook.

The BOJ last month tweaked its yield curve control (YCC) to allow long-term rates to rise more freely. But it stressed its resolve to maintain ultra-easy policy, keeping markets focused on the gap between U.S. and Japanese yields.

Soaring U.S. Treasury yields pushed up the dollar to 146.565 yen on Thursday, the highest since Nov. 10, giving rise to market speculation Tokyo may step in again to prop up the yen.

A week ago, Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki warned against excessive volatility and said authorities would “respond appropriately to excessive moves.” But officials have mostly refrained from commenting on foreign exchange rates since then.

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