Japan's April yen intervention set daily record as pressure persists

In April, Japan's central bank carried out a record single-day intervention to buy the yen, selling $40 billion of the country's currency reserves, according to data released on Friday by Japan's Ministry of Finance. This move came as the yen continued to weaken, approaching a 40-year low of 163 per dollar in July. The intervention aimed to counter the currency's persistent decline, which had brought the yen from a near two-year low of 160.725 per dollar in April to around 155 by May 6.

The record single-day buying of 6.28 trillion yen on April 30 surpassed the previous high of 5.92 trillion yen set just a few days earlier on April 29. The intervention was a response to market pressure and investor caution ahead of U.S. employment data, which could influence the Federal Reserve's interest rate decisions.