US, Japan finance chiefs say current dollar-yen reflects fundamentals
BANFF, Alberta, May 21 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Japanese Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato agreed on Wednesday that the dollar-yen exchange rate currently reflects fundamentals, the U.S. Treasury Department said.
"They reaffirmed their shared belief that exchange rates should be market determined and that, at present, the dollar-yen exchange rate reflects fundamentals," the department said in a statement.
Bessent and Kato met on the sidelines of the Group of Seven finance ministers gathering in Banff, Canada.
They discussed trade and currency issues, but as in their previous meeting in April, they did not discuss foreign exchange levels, according to the department.
Japan and the United States have agreed to keep the thorny issue of currency rates separate from direct trade negotiations, setting it aside for talks between their finance ministers.
President Donald Trump's focus on addressing the huge U.S. trade deficit and his past remarks accusing Japan of intentionally maintaining a weak yen have led to market expectations that Tokyo will face pressure to strengthen the yen's value against the dollar to give U.S. manufacturers a competitive advantage.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Sinister face behind Brooklyn Jewish terror plot revealed as suspect is hauled to America for justice
A Pakistani man accused of plotting a chilling ISIS-inspired mass shooting at a Jewish center in Brooklyn has been hauled to New York to face justice. Muhammad Shahzeb Khan, 20, was extradited from Canada after allegedly scheming to unleash a terror attack targeting Jewish Americans with automatic rifles - on or around the anniversary of Hamas ' Oct. 7 massacre in Israel. Prosecutors say Khan aimed to 'kill as many members of our Jewish community as possible' in a horrifying attack meant to mirror the devastation of 9/11. Khan, who had been living in Quebec, was arrested last September by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) just 20 kilometers from the U.S. border. According to U.S. Attorney Damian Williams, Khan had been communicating with an undercover law enforcement officer posing as an ISIS sympathizer, laying out his entire plan - down to the AR-style rifles, ammunition, and getaway strategy. 'During one communication, Khan noted that "if we succeed with our plan this would be the largest attack on U.S. soil since 9/11",' prosecutors said in a statement. Khan began posting extremist propaganda online in late 2023 and soon connected with others via encrypted messaging apps, allegedly pledging support to ISIS and sharing attack blueprints with a U.S.-based co-conspirator. By August 2024, he allegedly switched his target to a Jewish community center in Brooklyn, with plans to carry out the shooting near the one-year mark of the Hamas-led rampage that left more than 1,200 people dead in Israel. Khan is now facing multiple charges in the U.S., including attempting to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization and attempting to commit terrorism transcending national borders. If convicted, he faces life in prison. The shocking case has sent ripples through Jewish communities in New York and beyond, with authorities praising the undercover operation that stopped the alleged plot before it could be carried out. The allegations have not yet been proven in court. The case comes amid rising fears over anti-Semitic violence nationwide—just days after a pro-Israel rally in Colorado was firebombed in what the FBI is calling a 'targeted terror attack.' Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, allegedly injured eight people—aged 52 to 88—after launching a Molotov cocktail-style attack at a peaceful rally in Boulder on Sunday during the Jewish holiday of Shavuot. Terrifying footage showed victims lying motionless beside Israeli flags as flames erupted. One man was reportedly set ablaze. Soliman, shirtless and holding bottles of alcohol, yelled 'End Zionists' and 'Free Palestine' before hurling incendiary devices into the crowd, according to the ADL. The FBI labeled it a 'targeted terror attack,' while Colorado's Attorney General said it appeared to be a hate crime. Soliman first entered the U.S. in 2022 on a visa under the Biden administration, overstayed it, and was later granted a work permit through 2025, officials confirmed. He was arrested without incident but also hospitalized for minor injuries. One victim remains in critical condition. Police evacuated several blocks around Boulder's Pearl Street Mall.
Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
Bessent says US may 'roll the date forward' for some after 90-day tariff pause ends
June 11 (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday said the Trump administration is prepared to "roll the date forward" with trading partners negotiating in good faith if the deadline marking the end of the 90-day pause on President Donald Trump's reciprocal tariffs is reached with no deal. "It is highly likely that those countries - or trading blocs as is the case with the EU - who are negotiating in good faith, we will roll the date forward to continue the good-faith negotiations," Bessent told the House Ways and Means Committee. "If someone is not negotiating, then we will not." Bessent's remarks, in response to a question from a Democratic lawmaker, marked the first time a Trump administration official has indicated some flexibility around the expiration date for the pause. That date - July 8 - is now just four weeks away, and so far the White House has struck only one preliminary deal with a major foreign trading partner affected by the pause, Britain. A deal struck on Tuesday in London with China to de-escalate that bilateral trade war is proceeding on a separate track and timeline. The White House did not immediately respond to a question about whether Trump shared Bessent's view. Trump announced the pause on April 9, a week after unveiling "Liberation Day" tariffs against nearly all U.S. trading partners that proved to be so unexpectedly large and sweeping that it sent global financial markets into near panic. The S&P 500 Index (.SPX), opens new tab plunged more than 12% in four days for its heftiest run of losses since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020. Investors were so rattled they bailed out of safe-haven U.S. Treasury securities, sending bond yields rocketing higher. The dollar sank. Markets started their recovery on April 9 when Trump unexpectedly announced the pause. A further leg up in the recovery followed in early May when the Trump team reached a preliminary deal to dial back the triple-digit tariff rates it had imposed on goods from China. The events have given rise to what some on Wall Street have parodied as the "TACO" trade - an acronym for Trump Always Chickens Out. "The only time the market has reacted positively is when the administration is in retreat from key policy areas," Democratic Representative Don Beyer of Virginia told Bessent before pressing him on what should be expected at the end of the next deadline next month. "As I have said repeatedly there are 18 important trading partners. We are working toward deals with those," Bessent said before going on to signal a willingness to offer extensions to those negotiating in good faith.
Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
Canada should not rush potential sale of TMX pipeline, Trans Mountain CEO says
CALGARY, June 11 (Reuters) - Canada should not rush to sell the newly expanded Trans Mountain Pipeline, its CEO Mark Maki said on Wednesday at a conference in Canada. The Canadian government, which owns the C$34 billion pipeline, should be able to recover some of its investment if it plays its cards correctly.
