By Takaya Yamaguchi, Yoshifumi Takemoto and Makiko Yamazaki TOKYO, Aug 5 (Reuters) - Japan's government on Wednesday signed off on Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's flagship plan to slash the consumption tax on food,

Washington's decision to join Japan in supporting the battered yen has prompted questions over what motivated the rare coordinated intervention.

Soldiers and emergency workers combed through a badly damaged shopping mall and collapsed houses looking for trapped survivors Wednesday after a powerful earthquake that killed at least 18 people, including a foreigner,

Both countries have said that they will not hesitate to conduct joint interventions in the future.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent made $1 billion betting against the yen as the top investor for George Soros more than a decade ago. Now, he is using the might of the U.S. economy to prop up the Japanese currency.

The prolonged weakness of the yen, which recently hit a 40-year low against the dollar, has been a source of frustration in import-dependent Japan, where it has worsened inflation.

The two countries “will not hesitate to conduct further joint intervention," vowed Japan's Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama.

U.S. and Japanese officials confirmed that the Treasury Department had moved last week to prop up the currency, which had been trading near four-decade lows.

BEIJING, Aug 5 (Reuters) - China's foreign ministry on Wednesday said it had complained to Japan about Tokyo's newly released defence white paper, accusing it of playing up a Chinese threat and making "unwarranted comments" about Taiwan.