After nearly a year on credit watch, Standard & Poor’s acted today cutting Japan’s credit rating to AA-. News of the rating reduction sent the yen lower by 0.9 percent to 82.89 yen to the dollar from 82.17 at yesterday’s close.
“News of Japan’s rating downgrade spurred yen selling as it occurred,†said Koji Fukaya, chief currency strategist at Credit Suisse Group AG in Tokyo. “With domestic investors holding most of Japanese government bonds, the direct impact on the currency market will likely be small. Still, in the near term, the market will likely take this as a negative.â€
Source: Bloomberg
