For First Time Since 1998, US Helps Japan With Yen

Japan just got rare backup from Washington in its fight to stop the yen from sinking. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Japanese finance chief Satsuki Katayama confirmed that the two countries jointly stepped into currency markets Friday to prop up the yen, which recently hit a four-decade low against the dollar, reports CNBC. It's the first such intervention since 1998, at the height of the Asian financial crisis, notes the Wall Street Journal. The move helped push the yen from near 164 per dollar to as strong as 155.21 on Monday.

"There is a self-preservation element here," Louise Loo of Oxford Economics tells CNBC, referring to the US action. "Volatile markets driven by potentially fiscally-aggressive policies from Japan could extend to the US Treasury markets, destabilizing the dollar." Speaking to reporters on Air Force One, President Trump framed the intervention as an example of close ties with Tokyo: "They wanted a little bit of help, and we're always there for Japan." The yen has been steadily sinking against the dollar this year, with investors worried about factors including Japan's heavy fiscal spending and costly energy imports, the latter worsened by the Iran war, notes the New York Times.