The Japanese currency rallied yesterday as news of the appointment of Toshihiko Fukui as the Bank of Japan's new governor raised hopes of a continuation of his predecessor's policies. The yen began yesterday morning trading at just under 119 to the US dollar, but rose to 118.3 by mid-morning on a report by the Yomiuri newspaper that Mr Fukui would be the next central bank chief. Dollar buying in the afternoon saw the yen settle back at 118.54 to the US dollar. Yields on the benchmark 246th 10-year Japanese government bond closed 2.5 basis points lower at a yield of 0.805 per cent in late afternoon trading in Tokyo. But shares in the Bank of Japan, the world's only listed central bank, plunged 5.7 per cent yesterday to 47,000 yen. Shares in the bank had been untraded on Friday. The Nikkei-225 Index gained 0.6 per cent to 8,564.95 points.
