11.   But yen strength against the dollar this week has also been seen as a response to yen weakness in recent months.

12.   Combined with yen weakness, this move helped to minimize the effect of the official intervention on the dollar.

13.   Currency traders said they expected more yen weakness in coming days.

14.   Continued yen weakness is likely to further impact on local shares.

15.   Many economists have predicted yen weakness would lead to an increase in exports from Japan because a falling yen makes Japanese goods cheaper in dollar terms.

16.   On Friday, the Bank of Japan bought dollars in its third intervention last week to stem yen weakness.

17.   Speaking in parliament, Mitsuzuka said the period of yen weakness is over, and repeated his call for stability in the foreign exchange markets.

18.   The dollar was higher on a trend of yen weakness against the U.S. currency in recent weeks, dealers said.

19.   Yen weakness was exacerbated by negative economic news.

20.   But a ministry of finance official said later that excessive yen weakness was not desirable.