According to a report citing an interview with a US official, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has told Japanese Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato and Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda that Japan's next step should be an interest rate hike.

The report indicates that Bessent met with Kato and Ueda on the sidelines of the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting held in North Carolina.

This comes after media reports suggested Bessent expected the Bank of Japan to "do the right thing" regarding monetary policy. The BOJ is scheduled to hold its policy meeting on September 17-18, with widespread expectations that the central bank will further raise its policy rate.