• The US Dollar remains steady, with long-term highs at 155.00 on sight.
• The pair has exceeded the levels that triggered BoJ's intervention in 2022 and 2024.
• Japanese Financial Minister Katayama has warned against "one-sided" rapid movements on the Yen.
  

The US Dollar remains trading within its previous ranges on Thursday, consolidating gains near 20-month highs at the 155.00 area against a weaker Japanese Yen. The pair has surpassed the levels that prompted the BoJ to step in last year, which has boosted rumours of an intervention.

On Wednesday, the Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama stressed the need for currencies to move in a stable manner, and warned about “one-sided” and rapid movements in the currency, a comment that has been seen as a verbal intervention.

PM Takaichi puts pressure on the BoJ

The Yen has been trading lower across the board over the last sessions, following news that Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi pressured the Bank of Japan (BoJ) to keep interest rates unchanged at the December meeting.

Takaichi affirmed that she “strongly hopes” the BoJ conducts its monetary policy to achieve its inflation target through rising wages, rather than through increasing food costs, underlining her preference for lower borrowing costs.

These comments have dampened hopes of a December rate hike by the Bank of Japan, adding bearish pressure on an already weak Japanese Yen.

In the US, President Trump signed the bill that ended the largest US government shutdown in history. Risk appetite undermined support for the safe-haven US Dollar, and the market is now awaiting details on the release of a significant backlog og US official data for a better assessment of the US economic outlook and the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy path.