The Bank of Japan just hiked rates to 1.25%. Boohoo. That is nothing compared to the 4% Fed rate. But let us zoom out, there is this little thing called the Yen Carry Trade. For years, investors borrowed cheap yen at near-zero rates and deployed that money into higher-yielding assets around the world. As Japan keeps tightening and the rate gap with the US narrows, that trade gets way more expensive to hold. Add the recent Fed hike and it seems like cheap money is not the vibe right now. Is 1.25% enough to rattle markets? Maybe. Maybe it is already priced in. But it only takes a little to spook investors, and those little ripples tend to turn into bigger waves.