By Makiko Yamazaki
RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) -Japan considers the reaffirmation in the latest G20 joint communiqué of existing commitments against excessive exchange rate volatility as one of its most important achievements, Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki said on Friday.
“We believe that great achievements have been achieved at the G20, such as the inclusion of the reaffirmed foreign exchange commitments in the joint communiqué,” Suzuki said at a press conference after the meeting of the Group of Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors. Twenty (G20). Rio de Janeiro.
Under the commitments, the major economies of the G20 recognize that excessive volatility or disorderly movements in exchange rates could have negative consequences for economic and financial stability.
At the same news conference, Japan’s top currency diplomat Masato Kanda said Japan was pushing for the commitments to be included in the communiqué because their absence “could give a misleading message to the market.”
While a weak yen boosts exports, it has become a concern for policymakers by raising import costs and hurting consumption.
The yen rallied sharply this week, recovering from a 38-year low earlier this month, as market participants unwound their long-held bets against the currency ahead of a Bank of Japan (BOJ) meeting next week.
Some politicians have recently called on the BOJ to provide more clarity on its rate hike plan, in part to prevent the yen from testing new lows against the dollar.
Suzuki said he met with US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on the sidelines of the G20 meeting on Friday.
They discussed “wide-ranging topics including Russia, taxes and markets,” said Kanda, who briefed reporters on the bilateral meeting.
Asked whether currency trading had been included in the market talks, Kanda confirmed that it was on the agenda, but noted that it was just an extension of two countries’ routine communications and did not mean there were major issues to be dealt with. are addressed.
