The yen's decline against the US dollar widened after Bank of Japan Governor Ueda Kazuo sent conflicting signals about the future path of interest rate hikes. At a briefing after the Bank of Japan raised interest rates as scheduled, Kazuo Ueda said that the stage of monetary policy formulation had changed. When asked if it is possible to raise interest rates continuously or take more drastic action, he said that the Bank of Japan will not rule out any specific policy options in advance until the policy committee meeting is held. “Kazuo Ueda's press conference showed some hawkish signals, but that wasn't enough to support market expectations for tough hawks.” Chidu Narayanan, chief Asia Pacific strategist at Wells Fargo Bank, said. “In the short term, the Bank of Japan's lack of a hawkish stance and a stronger rebound in the US dollar should keep the USD/JPY exchange rate high and put pressure on the yen's short-term earnings.” The yen fell nearly 1.2% to 157.77 yen per dollar. Although all economists surveyed by Bloomberg predicted the Bank of Japan's interest rate hike decision, two members, Toichiro Asada and Ayano Sato, voted against the committee with a 7-2 vote.

The yen's decline against the US dollar widened after Bank of Japan Governor Ueda Kazuo sent conflicting signals about the future path of interest rate hikes. At a briefing after the Bank of Japan raised interest rates as scheduled, Kazuo Ueda said that the stage of monetary policy formulation had changed. When asked if it is possible to raise interest rates continuously or take more drastic action, he said that the Bank of Japan will not rule out any specific policy options in advance until the policy committee meeting is held. “Kazuo Ueda's press conference showed some hawkish signals, but that wasn't enough to support market expectations for tough hawks.” Chidu Narayanan, chief Asia Pacific strategist at Wells Fargo Bank, said. “In the short term, the Bank of Japan's lack of a hawkish stance and a stronger rebound in the US dollar should keep the USD/JPY exchange rate high and put pressure on the yen's short-term earnings.” The yen fell nearly 1.2% to 157.77 yen per dollar. Although all economists surveyed by Bloomberg predicted the Bank of Japan's interest rate hike decision, two members, Toichiro Asada and Ayano Sato, voted against the committee with a 7-2 vote.