Japan reserves right to act vs short-term FX swings

[WASHINGTON] Japan will not resort to competitive currency devaluation aimed at keeping the yen artificially low for a very long time, but reserves the right to act against short-term swings deemed excessive, a senior Ministry of Finance official said on Friday.

The official, who accompanied Finance Minister Taro Aso for the Group of 20 finance leaders' meeting in Washington, also said Japan lobbied to have the G20 communique retain language warning against excess volatility and disorderly currency moves.

The warning against excess volatility was included in the G20 communique in Shanghai in February for the first time in a while, after the yen shot up against the dollar in the first half of February, the official told reporters.

Such a warning is usually taken out of the communique when currency market volatility falls, but Japan argued that current market conditions warranted leaving it in, the official said.

REUTERS