By Stephen Kirkland Sept. 15 (Bloomberg) -- The yen weakened from a 15-year high and Japanese shares rose as the government intervened in the currency market for the first time since 2004. European stocks and U.S. futures fluctuated, oil fell for a second day and the yuan strengthened. The yen depreciated as much as 3 percent to 85.52 per dollar as of 10:48 a.m. in London and the Nikkei 225 Stock Average rallied 2.3 percent. The yuan appreciated 0.1 percent to 6.7418 against the U.S. currency and China’s Shanghai Composite Index slid 1.3 percent. The Stoxx Europe 600 Index lost 0.3 percent, while Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures slipped 0.2. Oil declined 1.3 percent to $75.84 a barrel. Gold climbed to within 0.5 percent of a record. Japan’s Finance Ministry sees 82 per dollar as the level to keep the yen’s gains from harming the economy, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshito Sengoku said in Tokyo, and the yen slid most in 19 months. The People’s Bank of China fixed the yuan’s reference rate at a record high before U.S. congressional hearings on the currency. China’s banking regulator may require some lenders to boost capital adequacy ratios to as high as 15 percent by 2012, a person with knowledge of the matter said. “If the yen continues its reversal, it will put one of the biggest concerns for Japan behind us and we should see increased buying of exporters,” said Ayako Sera, who helps oversee about $310 billion as a strategist at Sumitomo Trust & Banking Co. in Tokyo. Yen, Swiss Franc The yen weakened against all 16 of its most-traded counterparts, dropping 2.8 percent to 110.90 per euro. The Swiss franc depreciated 0.6 percent against the euro to 1.3022, sliding versus every one of the 16 except the yen. The yuan strengthened to 6.7330 per dollar, the highest level since the central bank unified official and market exchange rates at the end of 1993. The U.S. House Ways and Means Committee starts a two-day meeting to discuss the Asian nation’s currency policy. China may force “systemically important” banks to boost ratios, the person said, declining to be identified because no announcement has been made. Most Asian stocks rose even as the MSCI Asia Pacific Index slipped 0.1 percent. Sony Corp. and Honda Motor Co., which get more than 80 percent of their sales abroad, climbed at least 4 percent. Newcrest Mining Ltd. gained 1.3 percent in Sydney. Next Plc, Britain’s second-largest clothing company, rallied 4.3 percent after reporting higher earnings. PSA Peugeot Citroen led carmakers higher, jumping 4.1 percent after Morgan Stanley recommended the stock. Drax Group Plc fell 3 percent after JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered its recommendation for Europe’s largest coal-fired power plant. Industrial Output U.S. futures were little changed after the S&P 500 yesterday snapped a four-day advance. A report from the Federal Reserve today may show U.S. industrial production cooled in August as automakers scaled back output. Production increased 0.2 percent last month after rising 1 percent in July, according to the median estimate of economists in a Bloomberg News survey before the data, due at 9:15 a.m. in Washington. Other reports may show factories in the New York region grew for a 14th straight month and prices of imported goods climbed. The S&P GSCI Total Return index of 24 commodities fell 0.5 percent, the first decline in four days. Gold rose 0.2 percent to $1,270.85 an ounce, compared with yesterday’s record of $1,274.95 an ounce. Treasuries slipped, sending the yield on the 10-year note 3 basis points higher to 2.71 percent. The yield on the German bund advanced 2 basis points to 2.40 percent. Portugal auctions as much as 750 million euros of 12-month bills. To contact the reporter on this story: Stephen Kirkland in London at skirkland@bloomberg.net

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