The dollar rose Tuesday to its highest level against the yen in two weeks after Japan’s finance minister said warnings from U.S. Treasury officials wouldn’t stop Japan from trying to weaken its currency by selling yen in the open market.
One dollar USDJPY, +0.74% bought ¥109.05 in recent trade, up 0.6% from ¥108.40 late Monday in New York. That represented the U.S. currency’s strongest level against its Japanese rival since April 28, the day the Bank of Japan surprised investors by leaving its monetary policy virtually unchanged, driving the yen to its largest one-day gain in seven years.
The ICE U.S. Dollar index DXY, -0.01% a measure of the greenback’s strength against a basket of six rival currencies, was on track to rise for a sixth straight day as weak industrial-production data out of Germany helped weighed on the euro. The index was up 0.1% at 94.2270, also its strongest level since April 28.
The shared currency EURUSD, -0.0088% traded at $1.1376, compared with $1.1387 late Monday in New York.
Speaking before Japanese lawmakers, Taro Aso, Japan’s finance minister, said it would be “natural” for the government to intervene in the markets if the yen keeps logging “one-sided” gains.
