Japan, US finance chiefs discussed FX moves in bilateral meeting, official says

By Leika Kihara

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Japanese Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato and U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen discussed recent exchange-rate moves, among other topics, in a bilateral meeting held on Thursday, a senior Japanese finance ministry official said.

“The two sides discussed exchange-rate moves, and confirmed the need for the United States and Japan to communicate closely,” Atsushi Mimura, Japan’s vice finance minister for international affairs, told reporters.

A weak yen has become a source of concern for Japanese policymakers as it hurts households and retailers by pushing up the cost of raw material imports.

“We have recently seen one-sided, sharp moves in currency rates,” said Mimura, who oversees Japan’s currency policy.

“It’s desirable for exchange rates to move in a way that reflects fundamentals. We will be increasingly vigilant to currency moves, including those driven by speculation,” he said in Washington on the sidelines of the G20 and IMF meetings.

The dollar climbed above 153 yen for the first time in nearly three months on Wednesday as receding expectations of big interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve drew renewed attention to the wide rate divergence between U.S. and Japan.

The dollar stood at 151.83 yen on Thursday.