Japan’s finance chief said the yen has been weakening too fast over the past week, the strongest statement yet by one of the nation’s top policy makers as the central bank’s expanded stimulus drives down the exchange rate, Bloomberg said. “It’s up to the market to set the currency rate and it’s not something where we intervene,” Finance Minister Taro Aso said Friday in Tokyo at a regular press conference. “Sudden currency changes aren’t welcome, whether it’s up or down.” The weakening currency raises the price of imports and household costs, even as it’s boosting exports. The yen has lost 7 percent in value against the dollar since Oct. 30.
