The Fed’s rate checks had their desired effect, improving the yen’s fortunes, but driving the U.S. dollar down further. “Even … without actually transacting, (this) scared off those who were shorting the yen, causing it to strengthen and the U.S. dollar to weaken against the yen,” said Avery Shenfeld, chief economist of CIBC Capital Markets. But the decline, combined with Trump’s comments, fuelled ongoing speculation that the U.S. might be trying to drive down the value of the greenback against other currencies.
