The U.S. dollar traded at the lower 85 yen level early Thursday in Tokyo.
At 9 a.m., the dollar traded at 85.13-14, against 85.27-37 yen in New York and 85.09-11 yen in Tokyo at 5 p.m. Wednesday.
At one point, the dollar dropped to 84.72 yen, its lowest against the yen since July 1995, during London trading Wednesday, on the news that the U.S. Federal Reserve decided to effectively conduct additional monetary easing.
The strong yen has sent the Japanese stock market plunge nearly 3 percent on Wednesday, as it is unfavorable for Japanese exporters, a key driving force of the economy.
However, the BOJ, or the central bank, has so far yet to introduce additional easing monetary measures to counter yen’s sharp rise, as businesses appear to be making solid profits and consumer sentiment seems to be picking up.
In December, when the yen rose sharply against the dollar due to the Dubai debt woes, the BOJ was quick to introduce a new funding operation.
