Japan's finance minister Katayama said boosting long-term competitiveness
through investment and stronger domestic supply capacity will help support the
yen's credibility, and that economic and fiscal measures are not intended to
target the exchange rate but to improve international competitiveness. She made
the remarks as the yen remained weak despite US-Japan joint intervention, warned
yen weakness poses a material risk to domestic price stability, and markets said
are increasingly pricing a Bank of Japan rate hike at the September meeting.
