Japan finmin: BOJ should not buy foreign assets to affect FX

TOKYO Aug 1 (Reuters) - Japanese Finance Minister Jun Azumi said on Wednesday the central bank should not buy foreign assets for the purpose of affecting currency rates, which falls under the jurisdiction of the finance ministry.

"It would be inappropriate for the Bank of Japan to buy foreign assets as a substitute for currency intervention," Azumi said in a parliamentary committee.

Some lawmakers have argued that the BOJ should buy foreign assets to weaken the yen and thus support the export-reliant economy.

Takehiro Sato, one of the two new members of the BOJ's policy board, said last month that purchasing foreign bonds could be one future policy option as long as the central bank made it clear that it was providing liquidity and not trying to manipulate currencies.

The dollar hit a two-month low against the yen on Wednesday, falling as low as 77.90 yen on trading platform EBS, its lowest level since June 1.