Tokyo does not manipulate the currency market to weaken the yen, Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato told parliament on Friday, countering accusations from US President Donald Trump that Japan intentionally depreciates its currency to help exporters.

The remarks came ahead of Kato's scheduled visit to Washington next week, where he may hold a bilateral meeting with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on the sidelines of the G20 finance leaders' gathering and spring IMF meetings.

The bilateral talks, if held, will be the primary venue in which Japan and the US will discuss the thorny topic of exchange rates as part of broader tariff negotiations that kicked off on Wednesday.

"Japan does not manipulate the currency market to intentionally weaken the yen, as seen by the fact our latest action was to conduct yen-buying intervention," Kato told lawmakers when asked about Trump's comments criticising Japan for giving its exports a trade advantage by weakening the yen.

While saying he was aware the US was interested in discussing exchange-rate matters, Kato declined to comment on what could actually be debated. He also said no date has been fixed yet on the possible meeting with Bessent.

The yen's recent gains have been driven in part by market expectations the US may press Japan to join a coordinated effort to weaken the dollar and help narrow its huge trade deficit. (Reuters)