Yen weakens to 150 vs. dollar on receding early BOJ rate hike hope
The Japanese currency was already facing selling pressure after the U.S. Federal Reserve and the Bank of Japan decided to keep their benchmark interest rates steady in their latest policy meetings, in a sign that the U.S.-Japan interest rate differential will remain wide.
But the yen further lost ground after there was no indication of an early rate hike from BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda during his post-meeting press conference Thursday that market participants were closely watching for clues on how the recent tariff deal between Japan and the United States will affect its monetary policy.
The BOJ left its short-term interest rate unchanged for the fourth consecutive meeting at around 0.5 percent amid the remaining economic uncertainty over U.S. tariff policies, while raising its inflation projection to 2.7 percent for the current fiscal year from April from its earlier forecast of 2.2 percent.
The last time the yen weakened to 150 was when U.S. President Donald Trump announced the introduction of his so-called reciprocal tariffs in early April.
At 8:40 a.m. in New York on Thursday, the dollar fetched 150.03-13 yen compared with 149.47-57 yen at 5 p.m. Wednesday. In Tokyo at 5 p.m. Thursday, the dollar was traded at 149.38-40 yen.
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