Japanese yen hits highest level since February, breaking above post intervention ceiling

The Japanese yen jumped 1.4 percent to its highest level since February 2026 as trading volumes thinned around a US public holiday, Donya-e-Eqtesad reported, citing Bloomberg, on Monday, September 7, 2026 (16 Shahrivar 1405). The dollar yen rate fell to 154.06, breaking below the 155 level that had previously served as a floor for the currency following a joint currency intervention by the Bank of Japan and the US Treasury. The move followed the yen's drop to 160.39 per dollar last week. TradingEconomics data the same day put the dollar yen rate at 154.37, down 1.21 percent from the previous session, consistent with the strengthening trend reported by Donya-e-Eqtesad; that report also noted Japan's foreign exchange reserves fell by a record 79.6 billion dollars in August, following the country's largest ever yen buying intervention. Per Donya-e-Eqtesad, Masahiko Loo, senior strategist at State Street Investment Management, called the break below 155 a significant event, adding that rising expectations of a Bank of Japan interest rate hike were the main driver of the shift in market sentiment toward the yen.