Japan · Iran · Federal Reserve (FED) · Crypto Briefing
Japan raises rates to a 30-year high but the yen keeps falling anyway
Compiled by KHAO Editorial — aggregated from 1 source + 4 references discovered via search. See llms.txt for citation guidance.
◎ Multiple-sources
The Bank of Japan hiked to 1.0% for the first time since 1995, spent $73 billion defending the yen, and still can't stop the slide.
Key facts
- The Bank of Japan hiked to 1.0% for the first time since 1995, spent $73 billion defending the yen, and still can't stop the slide
- The BOJ intervened in foreign exchange markets, spending roughly $73 billion, or 11.7 trillion yen, between April and May 2026
- The Bank of Japan raised its benchmark interest rate to 1.0% on June 16, 2026, the highest level since September 1995
- Sayuri Shirai, a former BOJ board member, warned that if the Federal Reserve continues tightening its own monetary policy, the yen could weaken further to somewhere between 163 and 165 per dollar
Summary
The Bank of Japan raised its benchmark interest rate to 1.0% on June 16, 2026, the highest level since September 1995. Before this hike, the BOJ had raised rates to 0.75% in December 2025. Japan also tried the direct approach. Energy costs have surged, driven largely by the ongoing conflict in Iran, which has disrupted regional supply chains and kept commodity prices elevated.