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Tokyo FX summary: Dollar rises to upper 159 yen range as BOJ rate hike expectations recede

Fri Apr 17, 2026 3:18 pm JST Currency

The dollar traded at around 159.48 yen against the yen as of 3 p.m. in the Tokyo foreign exchange market on the 17th, strengthening by over 60 sen compared to 5 p.m. the previous day.

Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda stated at a press conference following the Group of Twenty (G20) finance ministers and central bank governors meeting on the night of the 16th local time (morning of the 17th Japan time) that "there are both upside risks to prices from higher oil prices and downside risks to the economy from deteriorating terms of trade, making policy responses extremely difficult." As market participants grew increasingly convinced that the BOJ has become cautious about near-term rate hikes, selling of the yen against the dollar and euro took the lead. Around the fixing time (the benchmark rate for foreign exchange transactions set by financial institutions around 9:55 a.m.), dollar buying and yen selling believed to be from real-demand players was observed. With U.S. crude oil futures remaining elevated, concerns about Japan's deteriorating trade balance?given the country's heavy reliance on energy imports?were easily heightened, and the dollar-yen pair temporarily reached 159.52 yen around 2:10 p.m.

The euro traded at around 1.1781 dollars against the dollar, down approximately 0.0010 dollars compared to 5 p.m. the previous day. Against the yen, the euro stood at around 187.88 yen, up approximately 55 sen.

Source: MINKABU PRESS

*Translated by generative AI. Click here for the original article.

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