US warns against excessive yen volatility, calls for BOJ rate hikes

TOKYO, July 24 : The U.S. Treasury Department said yen weakness has persisted despite the narrowing of U.S.-Japan interest rate differentials, warning excess volatility in the currency was undesirable.The Treasury also called for further interest rate hikes by the Bank of Japan, warning that inflation has strained households' purchasing power even as nominal wages rose notably."Monetary policy normalisation would help anchor inflation expectations and reduce excessive exchange rate volatility," the Treasury said in its semi-annual currency report released in Washington on Thursday.The statement came as the yen hit a 40-year low against the dollar on Thursday, keeping investors on alert for possible currency intervention by Japanese authorities who have threatened to act if they saw excessi