The national currency is the yen. Japanese currency. Floating exchange rate of the yen and major currencies

Today the Japanese yen is considered active trading instruments for the global foreign exchange market. In addition, it is included in the group of major reserve currencies along with the euro and US dollars.

Japanese yen: history of appearance and development

From 1600 to 1868, a very complex region called Edo existed in Japan. It included a variety of banknotes- copper, gold and silver coins, as well as banknotes. In addition, the currency of the central government was different from the 244 separate princely states that existed at that time. In addition, there were also fractional units. But due to technological progress and active economic development similar system has become impractical.

The year 1871 was also marked by significant reforms. Around the same time, the yen appeared. Translated, this word means “circle”. At the time of its introduction, 1 Japanese yen was equal to 1.5 grams of gold. Interestingly, over the following years, the gold standard often changed depending on the economic situation in the country.

By the way, the yen was approved as an international currency only on May 11, 1953. It was on this day that the International Monetary Fund approved a resolution that equated this monetary unit to 2.5 mg of gold. At the beginning of its existence (from approximately 1949 to 1971), the Japanese currency was pegged to the US dollar. In those days, $1 was worth 360 yen.

But in the following decades several devaluations occurred at once. Very soon the yen became a much more valuable and stable unit.

It's no secret that the Japanese economy suffered significantly in 2011 due to the earthquake and related disasters. But, despite all the forecasts of experts, the yen not only did not fall in price, but, on the contrary, began to quickly rise in price. Naturally, National Bank countries have undertaken necessary measures— several significant injections were made into financial system. However, the Japanese currency is still quite expensive to this day.

Japanese yen: existing denominations

Today, in free circulation in Japan there are both paper bills, and coins. There are banknotes worth one, two, five and ten thousand yen. In addition, metal coins with values ​​of one, five, ten, fifty, one hundred and five hundred yen are used in everyday life.

Japanese yen: exchange rate against the ruble and other world currencies

Today, one hundred yen costs approximately 0.98 US dollars. It is also important to know the exchange rate of the Japanese currency to other world currencies - one hundred yen can buy 0.76 euros.

As for the Russian ruble, the national bank offers next course— per hundred Japanese monetary units there are about 31 rubles. By the way, for 10 you can buy about 100 yen.

Today, Japan's financial systems are considered very profitable investment among business people. After all, historical data confirms that the yen has only grown in value throughout its existence. Therefore, some experts consider deposits in the most optimal option.

Today the topic of our conversation with you is Japanese currency: what kind of money the Japanese used before, and how they pay now.

Let's first delve into history - into the Middle Ages. This time (1603 - 1868) marks in Japan Edo era, during the reign of the Tokugawa clan.

Japanese Money. Story

This period of the country's life is characterized by dictatorship and complete control by the government. This also affected my financial life. The monetary system of that era was quite complex. There were numerous money made from metals (gold, silver, copper) and paper - about 1694 items in total.

All this diversity was called zeni. Money was produced by both the central government and private principalities.

In 1868, the Meiji Revolution took place, as a result of which emperors began to rule the country again. New times have brought about reforms and transformations. It was from this year that the currency known today was introduced into circulation - yen (or yen).

The yen, in turn, is equal to 100 smaller monetary units - sen. The yen symbol is ¥. At first, the Japanese yen was minted from silver and gold in the form of coins, and later, at the beginning of the 20th century, banknotes appeared.

The word "yen" has the root "en", which means "round" in Japanese. This is due to the fact that coins in the Middle Ages had different shapes: from rectangular to oval, and it was yen that began to be minted in the form of round coins.

Yen corresponds to the character 円, which has Chinese roots. The Chinese currency is called the yuan. Thus, we see that there are many similarities between Chinese and Japanese currencies.

Paper Japanese yen. Who is pictured?

The main banknotes currently used in Japan have the denomination 1000, 2000, 5000 and 10000 yen.

Let's take a closer look at these banknotes and find out who is depicted on them. Of course, these are all famous and significant people for Japan.

On the 1000 yen note depicts a bacteriologist Noguchi Hideyo(1876-1928) - among other things, he was involved in research on the cerebral cortex.

On the 2000 yen note we see a writer and poetess Murasaki Shikibu(978 - 1014), who is famous for her novel The Tale of Genji. Interestingly, the real name of this writer is unknown, but Murasaki Shikibu is the nickname she gave to her heroine in the novel.

5000 yen note takes us back to the Meiji and Taisho eras. It depicts an educator Nitobe Inazou(1862-1933). Probably many have heard about his famous work - “Bushido. The Soul of Japan”, setting out the basic principles of morality and ethics of the Japanese.

On the 10,000 yen note already a different writer: translator, philosopher and educator of the Meiji era - Fukuzawa Yukichi(1835-1901). His ideas had big influence during the period of reforms.

In addition to banknotes, coins are also issued in denominations of 1-500 yen.
Here's what nickel and bronze coins of various denominations look like:

On the reverse side of these coins we see various plants and flowers: rice ear, chrysanthemum, sakura, paulownia.

There are also memorial coins issued for the Olympic Games, as well as for various exhibitions:

Counterfeit banknotes can be found in Japan, especially in the 10,000 yen denomination. These banknotes have various defects and inaccuracies compared to the original banknotes. In particular, counterfeit bills have poor paper quality and blurred text.

Interesting fact: 2000 yen bills have a so-called kipp effect, or hidden image, used in their manufacture for security purposes. When viewing these banknotes from different angles, you can see the number "2000" in the left corner.

Finally, I will give some advice to tourists and travelers planning to visit Japan.

• The currency exchange procedure in Japanese banks is complicated by numerous formalities, so change your money better straightaway at the airport upon arrival.
• Also keep in mind that in some restaurants and cafes no credit cards accepted.
• There is no tipping in Japan. Even if you offer them, neither the waiter nor the taxi driver will accept them. Pay strictly according to the bill.
• In the regions of Aomori, Kagawa, Narita, Nagahama, Fukuoka, Kitakyushu, Hokkaido Island, Kansai and Tokyo there are special discount cards"Welcome cards" offered to foreign tourists. To obtain them, you should contact the JNTO Tourist Information Bureaus. Cards are issued free of charge; you only need to have your passport with you.

I will also mention the exchange rate of the Japanese yen in relation to others. In different periods of history, the exchange rate of the yen against the dollar has varied greatly: from 4 to 360 yen per dollar. Now 1 yen is approximately equal to 0.5 ruble, 0.008 dollar and 0.0076 euro.

That's all. Have you ever encountered any difficulties when handling Japanese money?

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The Japanese yen is the official means of payment in Japan. The currency has the following international code - JPU. Currently, among all existing currencies, the yen is quite popular and is in third place in the ranking. The Japanese currency, along with the euro and the US dollar, is one of the leading reserve currencies in the world. One yen is divided into 100 sen. Japanese currency is represented by the symbol ¥.

History of the yen

Japanese currency yen state language countries is pronounced abbreviated as “en”. However, the full name of the currency is “yen”. In Japanese writing there is a hieroglyph that denotes the national currency - “円”. However, this hieroglyph is not native, it was borrowed from the Chinese, where it is called fundamentally differently - yuan.

Oddly enough, the history of Japanese currency goes back to the times of the Qing Empire, which existed in China. It was on the territory of this empire that the main means of payment was silver, which took the form of ingots. Only several centuries later, in the 18th century, Mexican and Spanish coins minted from silver began to penetrate into Chinese territory. They became known as "Western Yuans" and "Silver Yuans".

A few years later, in Hong Kong, the British began issuing their own currency - Hong Kong dollars, which the Chinese called Hong Kong yuan. It was they who subsequently came to the territory of the Land of the Rising Sun, where the word “yuan” in the local language began to sound like “en”, which in Japanese meant “round”. Starting from the beginning of the 19th century, the Japanese began producing their own currency, which was similar to Hong Kong coins in composition and weight.

The Japanese yen coin was first minted in 1869. However, the yen was adopted as the main monetary unit of the state three years later - in 1871, after the Meiji Restoration. Until this point, Japan's currency was monetary system Tokugawa. In 1871, the Japanese government decided to temporarily stop the exchange of clan paper banknotes that had been issued by feudal lords since the end of the 16th century. The Ministry of Finance conducted a study in 1868, according to which it turned out that between 1603 and 1867 there were about 1,694 types of clan money in circulation. All of them were produced by 244 clans, 14 magistrates and 9 servants of the shogunate. By the second half of the 19th century, namely by 1879, the process of replacing clan banknotes with yen-based banknotes was completely completed.

This was not the only change that occurred in the country's monetary system. In addition, fractional units called “sen” and “rin” appeared. Sen was equal to 1/100 of a yen, and rin was equal to 1/1000. However, these fractional units came to an end in 1954. Despite this, “sen” is still used in the financial world to this day.

In 1872, the Meiji government passed a law according to which private banks, along with national banks, were allowed to produce convertible banknotes. It is worth noting that private banks in mandatory should have national status. Four years later, the law was revised, with the result that all banknotes issued in this way became non-convertible.

The Japanese yen at the end of 1897 contained 0.750 grams of pure gold. During the First World War, the exchange of banknotes for gold was completed. After this, government authorities, relying on economic situation in the country, the gold standard was repeatedly introduced and abolished. This continued until 1933, when the gold standard was officially abolished.

The financial crisis hit the state in March 1927. The reason for this was the release huge amount money Japanese bank in order to alleviate investors' concerns. However, depositors rushed to banks to withdraw their money, resulting in a shortage of banknotes. The country's national bank responded to this by issuing and putting into circulation 200 yen banknotes, the back of which did not have any image.

From 1933 to 1939, the Japanese state was part of the sterling bloc, when 1 yen was equal to 14 British pence. After Japan left the sterling block, the yen exchange rate to the dollar was 4.2675:1, which corresponded to the amount of gold that the yen contained - 0.20813 g.

During World War II, the Japanese yen was the main currency of the bloc. In the post-war period, until 1948, along with the Japanese yen, the occupation yen was also in circulation. Unfortunately, this period is not the most successful for the Japanese currency, since the depreciation of the yen occurred at a tremendous speed. Thus, in August 1945, 1 US dollar could be purchased for only 15 yen, while in 1947, 1 dollar already cost 50 yen, and in 1948 - 250 yen. Multiple rates were used in trading settlements, sometimes reaching 900 yen per US dollar. On April 25, 1949, a parity rate was established, which was 360 yen per 1 US dollar. This rate became the basis for the approval in 1953 of the parity of the yen at 2.46853 milligrams of gold. Thus, the yen was established as an internationally recognized currency by the International Monetary Fund. Until 1971, the yen was pegged to the dollar. However, after the devaluation of the dollar, which occurred in the same 1971, the value of the dollar was 308 yen. Two more years later, in February, a freely fluctuating yen-dollar exchange rate was established. This was due to another devaluation of the dollar. Thus, over the next few years, the “weight” of the Japanese currency increased significantly. And, if you are wondering how much the Japanese yen is worth today, then in the last few years its value has been 0.0091 US dollars (or approximately 100 yen per 1 US dollar).

Yen denominations

Today, the right to issue banknotes and coins belongs exclusively to the National Bank of Japan. The bank issues banknotes ranging from 1,000 to 10,000 yen. Each banknote has its own front side has an image of a person important to Japan. Thus, the 1000 yen banknote contains the image of the bacteriologist Noguchi Hideyo, and the 2000 yen banknote depicts the writer Murasaki Shikibu. Coins are also issued in different denominations - from 1 to 500 yen.

In 2004, new banknotes appeared in circulation, with denominations of 10,000, 5,000 and 1,000 yen. They all have the most modern technologies protection.

Japanese yen – official currency Japan. Bank code- JPY. 1 yen is equal to 100 sen and 1,000 rin, but in 1954 all coins of less than 1 yen were withdrawn from circulation. Current banknote denominations are 10,000, 5,000, 2,000 and 1,000 yen. Coins: 500, 100, 50, 10, 5 and 1 yen. The name of the currency comes from the Japanese word "en", which means "round".

The front side of Japanese banknotes depicts writers and educators: 10,000 yen - a portrait of Fukuzawa Yukichi, 5,000 - Nitobe Inazo, 2,000 - Murasaki Shikubu, and 1,000 - Natsume Soseki.

Coins differ from each other in the material of manufacture and design. Made of nickel are 500 yen (on the front side there is a paulownia flower), 100 yen (sakura) and 50 yen (chrysanthemum). A 10 yen coin depicting the Phoenix Hall of Bedoin Monastery and a 5 yen coin decorated with an ear of rice are minted in bronze. 1 yen is made of aluminum and contains a symbolic image of a sapling. On the reverse side of coins, as a rule, the denomination and year of issue are indicated. 5 and 50 yen have a hole in the center.

In its current form, the Japanese monetary system and the modern yen appeared in 1871. Before this, there were gold, silver, copper and paper banknotes, both from the central government and from 244 separate princely domains. At the first issue of a single state currency, 1 yen was equal to 1.5 g of pure gold.

The abandonment of the gold standard in Japan occurred gradually: from 1910, the issuance of 10 Japanese yen in gold was discontinued, from 1924 - 2 and 5 yen, and from 1932 - 20 yen. In 1933, the Land of the Rising Sun finally abandoned the minting of gold coins, which was due to economic crisis. At the same time, Japan joined the “sterling bloc”, pegging its currency to the British pound. The outbreak of war with China led to devaluation. In 1937, the price of the yen dropped to 0.29 grams of gold.

Since 1939, Japan has reoriented the national currency from the pound to the US dollar. At the same time, the value of the yen dropped to 0.20813 grams of gold, which corresponded to 4.27 yen per dollar.

Second World War completely destroyed the Japanese financial system. In August 1945, the dollar was already worth 15 Japanese yen, in March 1947 - 50, and in July 1948 - 250. At the same time, the yen was not freely convertible, and different exchange rates were introduced for different transactions. For some commercial transactions the price reached 900 yen per dollar.

Illustration: central bank Japan

In 1949, the American occupation administration, led by General Makarur, took up the matter and brought order to financial sector and established a single parity rate of 360 yen per dollar. At the same time, the largest Japanese monopoly companies were fragmented, which served as an impetus for the development of competition and the economy as a whole.

By May 1953, the yen became recognized by the International Monetary Fund monetary unit with parity to gold of 2.5 mg. In 1964, without agreement with the IMF, the Japanese leadership abandoned currency restrictions by making the yen freely convertible. Success in economic development led to a series of yen revaluations. By the beginning of the 1970s, it was already worth 308, in 1978 – 280 yen per dollar, and the period of greatest strengthening of the currency occurred in the mid-1980s.

Japanese stagnation began in 1991 with a series of bankruptcies financial institutions. The Asia-Pacific crisis of 1997-1998 led to the weakening of the yen from 115 to 150 yen per dollar. However, the devaluation stimulated further development exports, which again led to an increase in quotations. Already in 1998, the massive exodus of investors from the dollar caused a rapid rise in price of the yen from 136 to 111 within three days.

In 2002, Japan finally emerged from stagnation and a trend towards sustainable growth emerged. Wherein National economy– export-oriented, therefore the policy of the Bank of Japan is aimed at maintaining a cheap yen. To achieve this, the country is introducing minimum interest rates, and also use currency interventions. In 2007, a number of economists suggested that the yen was undervalued by 15% against the dollar and by 40% against the euro.

At the end of autumn 2017, the yen exchange rate is hovering around 111 per dollar, which is close to the historically highest price for the entire period after World War II. One euro can be bought for 131.5 yen, and one Russian ruble- for 1.9 yen.

The Japanese yen ranks third in the world in terms of foreign exchange reserves after the US dollar and the euro. The Bank of Japan is responsible for issuing currency and conducting monetary policy.

The value of the yen is determined primarily by the high level of production in Japan - the country ranks third in the world in terms of gross domestic product after the United States and China, as well as a positive trade balance and negative (-0.7% in 2010) inflation. At the same time Japanese economy depends on the import of raw materials and energy resources, as well as on the demand for exported goods: electronics, cars, etc.