The yen just hit its weakest level against the dollar in 40 years. 1 dollar now buys about 163 yen.
The last time Japanese money was worth this little was back in 1986.
Tokyo has tried everything.
It raised interest rates to the highest level in over 30 years, and it spent a record 73.5 billion dollars buying up its own currency in the spring.
The yen dropped anyway.
The Iran war is a big reason why. Japan imports nearly all its energy, and oil is paid for in dollars, so pricier crude means dumping yen just to keep the lights on.
Money is also draining out to the U.S., where savers earn far more than they can at home.
Officials keep saying they’ll act “at any time,” but obviously traders stopped believing that months ago.
Leave a Reply