55% of Japanese Firms Say 162.84 Yen Hurts Earnings as Import Costs Climb
Updated
Updated · investinglive.com · Jul 15
55% of Japanese Firms Say 162.84 Yen Hurts Earnings as Import Costs Climb
3 articles · Updated · investinglive.com · Jul 15
Summary
55% of Japanese firms told a Reuters survey that yen weakness is hurting earnings, while only about a third said the slide helps their business.
The shift reflects rising import and energy costs as the yen touched a 40-year low of 162.84 per dollar, eroding the usual export boost from a weaker currency.
11.7 trillion yen in government intervention from late April to early May failed to stop the downtrend, and almost no respondents said they could tolerate dollar/yen above 160.
Nearly half of firms also said BOJ rate hikes have already hurt operations, with the policy rate now at a 31-year high of 1.0% before the July 30-31 meeting.
Japan is trapped between a damaging weak yen and a recession-inducing rate hike. Is there any escape from this economic dilemma?
The weak yen was once Japan's economic superpower. Has it now become its greatest vulnerability, signaling a need for radical change?
Japanese Yen Plunges to 40-Year Lows: Economic Impacts and Policy Challenges in 2026
Overview
The Japanese yen has entered a historic slump, trading at multi-decade lows due to a persistent interest-rate gap with the U.S. and Japan’s easy fiscal policy. While concerns about possible intervention by Japanese authorities have temporarily slowed further declines, analysts expect the yen to stay under pressure as the U.S. Federal Reserve remains hawkish. Official interventions may briefly halt depreciation, but they cannot change the underlying forces driving the yen’s weakness. This situation has created challenges for Japanese businesses and households, highlighting the limits of intervention and the need for deeper policy changes to support the currency.