Koichi Hamada, Yale professor emeritus of economics and former special adviser to Japan's prime minister, argues that Japan needs higher interest rates because the weak yen is straining the economy. The OECD estimates a purchasing-power-parity rate of about 93 yen per dollar, versus an actual range of 150–160, which makes Japanese goods cheap abroad but squeezes importers and pushes up consumer prices. The Bank of Japan raised its policy rate to 1.25% last month, the highest in 31 years, but the author considers this insufficient with US short-term rates near 4% and the carry trade continuing. He urges BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda to tighten the money supply and raise rates more aggressively.
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Related tickers and likely impact
USD/JPY
▼ Likely negativeRelevance: low
| Market | Currencies |
|---|---|
| Close on 10/16/2026 | 157.995 |
| Change that session | 0.00% |
Impact is scored by AI from the headline and may be wrong. It is not investment advice.
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