BOJ chief again says he stands ready to act as machine orders slump

Tokyo

BANK of Japan (BOJ) governor Haruhiko Kuroda on Thursday stressed yet again that the central bank will "do all that it takes" in order to achieve its ends as official data revealed a worrying drop in core machinery orders for November.

His comments, suggesting that the world's third largest economy could be headed for a further dip, came amid a fresh slide in Tokyo stock prices and continuing signs that a strengthening of the yen - courtesy of its status as a "haven" currency amid general market turbulence - could undermine the country's economic gains over the past two years.