Japan’s top FX diplomat Mimura to serve in post for second year

By Makiko Yamazaki

TOKYO (Reuters) -Japan reappointed top foreign exchange diplomat Atsushi Mimura for a second year, the finance ministry said on Tuesday, cementing his role in the country’s current U.S. tariff negotiations.

“We sought his reappointment taking into account his engagement and current circumstances,” Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato told reporters.

Kato noted Mimura has been engaged in trade talks with the U.S. and discussions on foreign exchange with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.

The 58-year-old Mimura will remain vice finance minister for international affairs – a post that oversees Japan’s currency policy and coordinates economic policy with other countries. The reappointment is effective July 1.

While the finance ministry conducts a regular personnel reshuffle in July every year, it is common for top foreign exchange diplomats to have their terms extended beyond a year.

Mimura’s predecessor Masato Kanda, currently president of the Asian Development Bank, stayed in the post for three years as he combated the yen’s relentless falls against the dollar with record foreign exchange intervention.

TO THE POINT

The Japanese currency has recovered some ground since Mimura took the post, trading around 145 per dollar now compared with the 38-year low of 161.96 a year ago.

But the weak yen remains a headache for Japanese policymakers as it accelerates inflation by pushing up import costs.

In contrast to his predecessors, Mimura’s communication style is generally considered to be more succinct, often delivering very brief currency-related commentary that relies more on nuanced changes in language.

For example, during the yen’s sharp fall beyond 150 in November last year, he said the government was closely watching currency developments with the “utmost urgency,” escalating his commentary from “high urgency” previously.

“Being always vocal is one style of communication, but not speaking may also be another way of communication,” Mimura told Reuters last year. “We must avoid creating unnecessary market speculation or uncertainties, but communication can be done both by speaking and not speaking.”

(Reporting by Makiko Yamazaki; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Sam Holmes)