Dollar falls to a 14-year low against the yen

As the dollar falls, the price of gold is rising

The US dollar has hit a 14-year low against the Japanese yen with low interest rates in the US making the greenback less attractive to investors.

The dollar slipped to 86.5 yen, its lowest level since July 1995.

The US has indicated it is unconcerned about the dollar's slide, and will not intervene to strengthen it.

Many traders are swapping dollar holdings for gold as a safer investment in the current uncertain economic climate.

The price of gold is currently at a record high of $1,194.5 an ounce.

"This yen strengthening is caused by dollar selling rather than yen buying, so this is not something Japan can handle itself," said Yutaka Miura at Mizuho Securities.

"This trend will continue unless the Japanese government takes action, in co-operation with the US."

In the short term at least, analysts said such intervention was unlikely.

The dollar has also fallen significantly against the pound and the euro this year.

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Commentary

Thanks to Al Jazeera I've actually been tracking the Yen for about a year now. I remember a long time ago how it was $1 buying 110 yen or higher.

Now it's 1-88 on average. That's a huge slide and it was definitely unexpected. Everyday I watched it fall and fall, month by month, no a steady trend down.

You couldn't say that about the Euro and the Pound which have been in this territory many times before and deserve it's higher numbers. Maybe this is a sign that the Japanese economy is finally recovering and getting out of the 90's stagnation that brought everything down there.