Bessent calls US yen support nominal, says stronger currency aids exports

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent characterized the American role in the recent currency operation as modest.

According to Bloomberg Economics, Bessent stated that the United States deployed a “nominal” amount in the coordinated intervention to prop up the Japanese yen. He offered this assessment during a Sept. 15 session with the House Financial Services Committee in Washington.

The secretary defended the operation as being in American economic interests. He linked a stronger yen to benefits for US trade and reduced pressure on Japanese government holdings of American debt.

“A stronger yen is better for American exports, a stronger yen means that the Japanese government will not have to sell US assets to finance foreign currency intervention,” Bessent said.

Bessent’s comments addressed the rationale behind the support for the Japanese currency. He indicated that the intervention helps prevent the need for Japan to liquidate US assets to fund its own foreign exchange operations.