Smoothing out such volatility is a legitimate reason for intervention. Adding the Treasury’s firepower will surely scare off speculators trying to profit off unwarranted volatility in the yen. Before the recent intervention, it had lost about a third of its value relative to the dollar since 2020. It has experienced anaemic growth in recent years, and rising oil prices could increase inflation, making the yen worth less. Currency market intervention is a desperate attempt by Tokyo and Washington to evade the blaring warnings from financial markets.