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Japan's FX intervention signals 160 yen line in the sand, says ex-official

Japanese authorities likely intervened in the currency market to signal they see 160 yen to the dollar as their line in the sand, Columbia University academic and former finance ministry executive Takatoshi Ito told Reuters on Thursday. "Intervention is effective if conducted in a timely manner," said Ito, who is an associate of former Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda and retains close contact with current Japanese policymakers. "By hammering speculative moves with intervention, the authorities are trying to generate market expectations that 160 could be the dollar/yen's ceiling," he said.