Japan spent 5.92 trillion yen ($41 billion) on April 29 to shore up its currency against the U.S. dollar, its largest-ever single yen-buying intervention, followed by another 3.87 trillion yen two days later, government data showed Wednesday.
It is the first time that official data has confirmed the dates and amounts of yen-buying, dollar-selling operations by Japanese authorities between April and June. The total amount spent during that period came to 9.79 trillion yen, a quarterly record for yen-buying.
The yen's rapid weakening had raised alarm among Japanese authorities who at the time threatened "appropriate" action to respond to excessive volatility.
After scaling a then 34-year high above 160 yen, the dollar plunged about 5 yen in a short span of time to 154 yen in New York on April 29.
On May 1, the currency also plunged to the 153 yen zone from the 157 yen range.
When the Finance Ministry decides to intervene in the foreign exchange market, it asks the Bank of Japan to conduct actual operations.
After the April 29 and May 1 operations, senior Japanese government officials did not say whether Japan had stepped in, in an apparent bid to make market traders jittery.
Japan also embarked on another round of yen-buying, likely in early July, as the yen's weakening trend persisted with the dollar nearing 162 yen, a 37-year high against the Japanese currency.
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