The yen falls below the 160 threshold, raising the risk of intervention by the Bank of Japan

The Japanese yen fell below the 160 level against the US dollar for the first time since September, marking its third consecutive trading day of decline. Rising US Treasury yields and heightened expectations of Federal Reserve interest rate hikes have strengthened the US dollar, with the US-Japan interest rate differential surpassing 250 basis points, increasing pressure on the yen to depreciate. Jun Mimura, an official in charge of foreign exchange at Japan's Ministry of Finance, stated on Thursday that recent yen exchange rate fluctuations have been "too rapid," and referenced previous interventions in the foreign exchange market. Japanese Finance Minister Katsuyuki Katayama and US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen have also indicated that further intervention in the forex market could occur if necessary. Earlier, the USD/JPY pair fell sharply by more than 70 points to 159.30, sparking market speculation about intervention by Japanese authorities, before rebounding to 159.72. This summer, Japan intervened in the forex market three times, deploying a total of 15.4 trillion yen (approximately $96.4 billion).