• US dollar has gained 7% against yen since August
• Japan PM Abe uneasy with sudden yen weakness
• Incremental rise in Japan’s sales tax possible

​On September 19th USD/JPY reached highs of 109.46 not seen since early 2008, after one of the busiest weeks in currency markets all year. The greenback has gained almost 7% against JPY since August, a move that can be pinpointed to have begun on August 28th when the gross domestic product figure for the US came in at 4.2% in the second quarter, compared to the -2.1% that had been printed in the previous quarter.