Yen hits strongest level in 15 months against US$

London

THE yen jumped 2 per cent to its strongest level in 15 months against the US dollar on Thursday in another wave of global capital flows into the traditional security of Japan, raising expectations of official intervention to cool the currency's rise.

A chaotic week on European and US stock markets has sent investors scuttling for the perceived safety of the yen, upping its value against the US dollar by almost 9 per cent since the start of February. The euro and Swiss franc have also benefited, both hitting their highest in around four months against the US dollar in frantic morning trade on major currency markets in Europe. "We got to 8am this morning and it just hit in a wave," said Richard Benson, head of portfolio management at currency fund Millennium in London.