Dollar Plunges to New Low in Tokyo

The dollar plunged to a new low in morning trading today, and stock prices recovered from an early decline to end the final half-day session of the year slightly higher on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

The dollar opened at a record-low 123.87 yen, 1.33 yen below Friday’s close, then fell momentarily to 123.30 yen, its lowest level since modern exchange rates were established. It edged up to close the morning session at 123.60 yen.

On the stock exchange, the 225-share Nikkei Stock Average ended five days of decline to close the session up 30.56 points at 21,564.00, still far below the 21,910.08 points it registered on Oct. 20, one day after Wall Street’s “Black Monday.”

In the previous five trading days in Tokyo, the index had fallen a total of 1,423.40 points.

Traders said the Bank of Japan bought $200 million to $300 million during the morning in an attempt to slow the dollar’s fall.

A currency trader at Sumitomo Bank said market players had been cautious about pressuring the dollar down too far.

The Tokyo Stock Exchange will be closed Dec. 29-Jan. 3, and the foreign exchange market will be closed Jan. 1-3.