Bank of Japan spends 87 billion U.S. dollars to support yen amid currency weakness

In a significant move to bolster the yen, the Bank of Japan reportedly intervened in the currency market last week, utilizing approximately 87 billion U.S. dollars, or 11 trillion yen, according to Bloomberg on Monday.

This intervention took place on July 30 and 31, with estimates indicating the central bank spent 53 billion U.S. dollars and 34 billion U.S. dollars, respectively.

The yen has struggled so far this year, reaching a low of 164 to the U.S. dollar on July 30, marking its weakest level since 1986.

In response to the ongoing volatility, Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama announced that the ministry engaged in coordinated yen-buying efforts with the U.S. Department of the Treasury late last week.

The yen-buying operations from Thursday night through Saturday morning, Japan time, marked the first coordinated market intervention by Tokyo and Washington since 2011, when the yen surged following the Great East Japan Earthquake.

Katayama said both countries "will not hesitate to conduct a further joint intervention."

Following the monetary actions, the yen briefly strengthened, rebounding to the lower 155 yen range against the U.S. dollar on Monday morning, achieving its highest level in nearly three months.

The central parity rate of the Chinese currency renminbi, or the yuan, weakened 19 pips to 6.7917 against the U.S. dollar Tuesday, according to the China Foreign Exchange Trade System.

In China's spot foreign exchange market, the yuan is allowed to rise or fall by 2 percent from the central parity rate each trading day.

The central parity rate of the yuan against the U.S. dollar is based on a weighted average of prices offered by market makers before the opening of the interbank market each business day.