Yen gives back half its rebound as traders eye fresh US-Japan action
What's next: Traders are watching the 160-per-dollar level after the yen slid to about 158.45 from Monday's 155.23 peak.
The yen gave back nearly half of its gains from this week’s coordinated US-Japan intervention, raising expectations that Tokyo and Washington could return to the market. The currency traded around 158.45 per dollar on Friday, after strengthening to 155.23 on Monday from levels near 164 last week, a four-decade low. Analysts said the retreat highlights how hard it is to reverse the yen’s broader slide while the US-Japan rate gap stays wide. Japan likely spent about $53 billion on July 30 and another $34 billion on July 31 to support the currency, Bloomberg calculations showed. Overnight index swaps imply about a 60% chance of a Bank of Japan rate hike by September.