The Japanese Finance Minister and his deputy warn of fluctuations in the yen in the forex market.

Japan's newly appointed Finance Minister, Katsunobu Kato, confirmed at a press conference on Monday that the government will take necessary measures when needed while monitoring the impact of yen movements in the foreign exchange (Forex) market on economic and household activities.

Kato's statements included the following:

• The weakness of the yen has its advantages and disadvantages, but movements must be stable.
• The government will need to monitor the extent of the impact of excessive foreign exchange market movements on corporate and household activities.
• It will be up to the Bank of Japan to take specific monetary policy steps, and I will not comment on whether the interest rate should be kept at 0.25%.
• I hope that the Bank of Japan will communicate comprehensively with the markets and take the appropriate measures to achieve the 2% inflation target in a stable and sustainable manner.
• Necessary actions should be taken as required while monitoring the impacts of foreign exchange movements.

Kato's comments came after Atsushi Mimura, Japan's Vice Minister of Finance for International Affairs and the top official overseeing yen movements in the foreign exchange market, warned on Monday about speculative movements on the yen in the foreign exchange market as the yen dropped below 149 against the dollar.

Mimura emphasized that the Japanese government will monitor currency market movements, including speculative trading, with significant urgency.