Bessent’s Yen Message Raises Pressure on the Bank of Japan Ahead of September Decision

Asheville, North Carolina, 2 September 2026 – United States Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has urged Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda to pursue decisive monetary action against yen weakness, intensifying expectations that Japan’s central bank will raise interest rates at its 17–18 September meeting. The intervention adds an unusual international dimension to Tokyo’s domestic policy debate and puts currency stability, inflation and bond-market confidence firmly on investors’ near-term agenda.

The two officials met during the G20 gathering of finance ministers and central bank governors in North Carolina. According to the US Treasury’s account, Bessent emphasised sound formulation and communication of monetary policy, the anchoring of inflation expectations and the need to avoid excessive exchange-rate volatility. He also supported decisive Japanese market and monetary measures to address what Washington described as a substantially undervalued yen.