US Treasury bought yen in first such intervention since 1998
The New York Fed said it acted for the Treasury, while the Federal Reserve conducted no independent currency intervention during the quarter.
Dollar heads for strongest week since September as yen nears 160
Traders increased bets on a larger Federal Reserve rate increase, while Japan warned it would respond to currency volatility.
The dollar was heading for a 0.9% weekly advance on November 13, its strongest performance since September, as traders weighed a larger Federal Reserve rate increase. The yen traded at 159.90 per dollar, drawing another warning from Japanese officials about currency volatility.
At 103.17, the dollar index remained close to levels last reached in April 2025. The euro traded at $1.1065, up 0.1%, but was down 0.7% for the week after touching its weakest level against the dollar since April 2025.
Rising oil prices, stronger-than-expected US inflation figures and hawkish Fed comments supported expectations of tighter monetary policy. Treasury yields climbed after President Donald Trump said the United States did not need an agreement with Iran, intensifying concerns about Middle Eastern oil supplies and inflation.
Two-year Treasury yields were around 4.85%, having increased 33 basis points over the week. CME FedWatch showed traders assigning a 12.1% probability to a 50-basis-point increase next month, compared with 0% a week earlier. Some Fed officials signaled they would consider that size of increase if inflation pressures persisted.
Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama said the government would take appropriate action in response to currency volatility. The yen had lost 0.9% over the week. Japan previously spent 15.4 trillion yen supporting its currency after it reached 163.99 per dollar in late July.
Cryptocurrencies also declined: bitcoin fell 3.8% to $68,759, its lowest since August, while ether lost 4% to $1,933.49.