Japan watching yen`s sharp rise against dollar `calmly: Fujii

TOKYO, Oct. 7 Kyodo -
Finance Minister Hirohisa Fujii said Wednesday that Japan is watching
''calmly'' the recent steep rise in the yen's value against the U.S. dollar,
indicating no intervention is needed under current circumstances.
''As I always say, some measures must be considered if (foreign exchange) moves
turn abnormal or disorderly,'' Fujii said at a regular news conference after
the dollar fell to 88.08 yen, the lowest level since Dec. 18 last year in
Tokyo. ''But now it is at the stage of watching calmly.''
Fujii said the yen and the euro's recent rises are owed mainly to the dollar's
weakness, rather than their own strength increasing, and this view has been
shared by the Group of Seven major developed countries.
''And regarding what is causing the dollar's weakness, I would say that it has
been triggered by expectations of the United States continuing with a low
interest rate policy,'' Fujii said, adding the view has also been shared by
Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States.
Fears are mounting among some corporate executives and policymakers that a
further rise in the yen would hurt Japan's nascent recovery, as the country's
economy is highly dependent on the performance of the export-oriented
manufacturing industry.
Since March 2004, the Finance Ministry, which is in charge of Japan's currency
policy, has not stepped into the currency market.
==Kyodo