Japanese Yen Surges on Bets for More BOJ Interest-Rate Hikes
The Japanese yen rose to a six-week high against the dollar Friday. While trading was thin because of the Black Friday holiday in the U.S., the moves are still worth watching after volatility in the Asian currency sparked market turmoil earlier this year.
The reason for the move this time was a faster-than-expected inflation reading that raised expectations for a Bank of Japan interest-rate increase next month. The yen briefly surged to below 150 against the dollar, compared with about 156 earlier this month.
The dollar has weakened slightly after gaining in the immediate aftermath of Donald Trump’s election victory. The dollar index, a measure against a basket of peers of the greenback, has fallen 1.5% over the past five days. It’s still up 1.6% over the past 30 days.