The Japanese yen strengthened to a two-month high against the U.S. dollar, reaching the 149 zone on Thursday, driven by speculation that the Bank of Japan (BOJ) might hike interest rates at its next policy meeting. The yen's appreciation was fueled by stronger-than-expected GDP data and comments from BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda, who did not discuss the recent trend of higher interest rates in a meeting with Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba. This led investors to interpret the government's stance as tacitly accepting rising domestic interest rates, further boosting speculation of a BOJ rate hike. The yen hit 149.92 against the dollar, marking a 1.10% increase from the previous day, its highest level since December, before settling at around 150.16-18 yen at 5 p.m. The anticipation of a rate hike also pushed Japan's benchmark 10-year government bond yield to a 15-year high of 1.440 percent.