[TOKYO (Reuters)]- Finance Minister Masato Kanda replied to reporters on the afternoon of the 20th that the yen exchange rate was temporarily above 150 yen per dollar, saying, “Is he intervening or not? I will not comment on how.” He said the available funds for the purchase intervention of yen are “infinite”.
Finance Minister Kanda referred to the fact that the meeting of G7 finance ministers and central bank governors shared the acknowledgment that the exchange rate is fluctuating significantly and said: “He is no longer in a situation where is allowed, “he said.
In addition, he said: “We have always established a system that allows us to take the necessary actions.” He declined to comment on exchange rates, saying, “I have nothing to say.”
Before Finance Minister Kanda, Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki returned to the Finance Ministry after the House of Council’s Budget Committee and, after refusing to comment on the exchange rate level, said: “They can’t be excessive and rapid changes due to speculation are tolerated, ” he told reporters.
Regarding the excessive fluctuations that accompany speculation, he said: “There is no change in the conventional idea of giving a decisive answer” and stressed: “We will continue to closely monitor trends with a sense of urgency.”
It was the first time in about 32 years since August 1990 that the dollar reached the 150 yen level.