Commerzbank: Yen may fall if BOJ doesn't give clear rate hike signal

According to a report by Odaily Planet Daily, Commerzbank analyst Volkmar Baur stated in a report that if the Bank of Japan keeps interest rates unchanged on Tuesday and takes a cautious stance on future rate hikes, the yen could weaken. He noted that the market expects the BOJ to provide a fairly clear signal that a rate hike is possible in June—at least provided that the conflict in Iran has eased by then. If this signal fails to materialize, the Japanese Finance Ministry's warnings about intervention to support the yen will "no longer be of much help." Baur said that under such circumstances, the USD/JPY pair could rise above 160. (Jin Shi)