Japanese Finance Minister Jun Azumi said on Friday that the country would take decisive action on the currency market if necessary, adding that he would not hesitate to conduct solo intervention to counter speculative moves.

Speaking to a Diet committee, Azumi said that the government stepped into the currency market last fall to weaken the yen after the U.S. dollar fell to 75.63 yen and halted the operation when dollar recovered to 78.20 yen, in a rare remark linking specific exchange rates to an intervention, according to local Kyodo News.

But the report later said that Azumi denied he mentioned specific rates for forex intervention.

Azumi added current foreign exchange rates do not reflect Japan 's economic fundamentals.