Bessent on currency markets and economy

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent made bold remarks about currency markets and the U.S. economy, asserting his position with the declaration, "I am the house now." Bessent's comments, delivered on September 9, came in the context of a significant, albeit temporary, intervention in currency markets aimed at bolstering the Japanese yen. Bessent reportedly told an audience at Southern Methodist University that he possessed "pretty good insight" into the Bank of Japan's future actions, a statement that raises questions about the line between policy coordination and market manipulation. This assertion followed the first joint U.S.-Japan currency operation in nearly three decades, which took place on July 31, 2026. During this operation, the U.S. Treasury, utilizing Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, sold euros to purchase yen. This marked the first time Washington had actively intervened in currency markets alongside Tokyo since the Asian financial crisis of 1998. Following the coordinated purchase, Japan subsequently deployed approximately 98.7 billion yen in currency intervention, a record amount, to stabilize the currency.