WSJ:WORLD FOREX: Intervention Concerns Keep Dollar Solid Vs Yen in Asia
--A meeting between senior MOF and BOJ officials renews concerns over a possible intervention
--MOF Nakao said the two agreed speculators were probably behind the yen's sharp rise
--One trader says the two officials might have discussed both intervention and monetary policy
By Tatsuo Ito
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
TOKYO (Dow Jones)--Renewed fears over a possible yen-selling intervention after a meeting of senior Japanese Finance Ministry and Bank of Japan officials kept the dollar solid against the yen in Asia on Thursday.
Vice Finance Minister For International Affairs Takehiko Nakao said Thursday he held an impromptu meeting with his counterpart at the BOJ, Hiroshi Nakaso, to discuss the yen's recent rise. Nakao said the two agreed speculators were probably behind recent yen rises but declined to say if the two officials discussed the possibility of an intervention.
Traders said the news helped support the greenback which has hovered within reach of testing its post-War record low of Y76.25. At 0440 GMT, the dollar was at Y76.66 from Y76.60 late New York Wednesday, according to EBS via CQG.
"The meeting fed speculation that they might have discussed a combination of intervention and monetary policy," said Yoshio Yoshida, a trader at Mizuho Trust and Banking.
"Given the (Swiss National Bank's) credit easing that has resulted in pushing some of its interest rates into negative territory and helping the Swiss franc recover somewhat, there might be something left that the BOJ can do," Yoshida said.
Traders and analysts said without such measures, the dollar could fall more and could eventually challenge a new record high. They were focusing on a raft of U.S. economic indicators later in the day.
"If the economic data turn out to be weak, that will lead to risk-aversion and weak shares, resulting in a weaker dollar," said Junya Tanase, chief FX strategist at JPMorgan Chase Bank in Tokyo.
Tanase noted if Y76.25 is breached, investors with long-dollar positions will unwind their holdings, making the pair's decline from there somewhat fast-paced, pushing it down to Y76.00.
U.S. data due later include the July consumer price index, weekly initial jobs data and the Philadelphia Fed survey for August.
Meanwhile, the euro eased against the dollar in Asia as the weak stock market in the region reduced demand for the single currency, traders said. The euro was at $1.4390 from $1.4427 late Wednesday, while the euro was at Y110.29 from Y110.50. The U.K. pound was at $1.6511 from $1.6544.
The ICE Dollar Index, which tracks the U.S. dollar against a basket of currencies, was 73.957 from 74.010.
Interbank Foreign Exchange Rates At 00:50 EDT / 0450 GMT
