By Anchalee Worrachate and Candice Zachariahs Sept. 8 (Bloomberg) -- The yen advanced to a 15-year high against the dollar and the Swiss franc reached a record against the euro as renewed concern that European banks will struggle amid a slowing recovery prompted investors to seek refuge. The franc approached parity with the dollar for the first time in nine months as the MSCI World Index of shares dropped 0.4 percent. European Central Bank Governing Council member Axel Weber said today while he doesn’t expect a recession or a deflationary spiral, policy makers “shouldn’t be tempted to call an end to the crisis.” The yen also rose on speculation the Federal Reserve’s Beige Book business survey may add to evidence the U.S. economic recovery is stalling. “It’s a risk off day, and that reflects in the performance of haven currencies,” said Jane Foley, a senior currency strategist at Rabobank International in London. “There’s still a lot of concern about the global economy as well as the fiscal outlook and the health of the banking sector in the euro region.” The yen strengthened to 83.62 per dollar as of 9:44 a.m. in London from 83.83 yesterday in New York, after earlier reaching 83.35, the strongest level since May 1995. Japan’s currency was at 106 per euro from 106.32, after appreciating to 105.80, the strongest since Aug. 24. The franc appreciated 0.2 percent to 1.2795 against the euro and the same percentage to 1.0093 per dollar. The dollar was little changed at $1.2677. To contact the reporters on this story: Candice Zachariahs in Sydney at czachariahs2@bloomberg.net; Ron Harui in Singapore at rharui@bloomberg.net.

Source