The yen weakened, falling toward 100 per dollar for the first time since April 2009, after Bank of Japan (8301) Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said he was emboldened to press ahead with a campaign to defeat deflation. Japan’s currency declined against 13 of its 16 major counterparts after the Group of 20 offered no opposition to the central bank’s monetary stimulus policies at a meeting last week in Washington. The euro rose for a third day versus the yen after Giorgio Napolitano was re-elected to a second term as Italian president. South Korea’s won fell versus the dollar on speculation the government will act to protect exporters. “There’s nothing really in our view to stop the yen from continuing to weaken,� said Ray Attrill, global co-head of currency strategy at National Australia Bank Ltd. in Sydney “We’re having a little bit of tug of war, I think, up close to 100. I’ve no doubt we’ll go through it at some point.� The yen fell 0.2 percent to 99.76 per dollar at 8:52 a.m. London time after depreciating to 99.90, the weakest since it reached a four-year low of 99.95 on April 11. Japan’s currency dropped 0.2 percent to 130.10 per euro. The euro was little changed at $1.3042. G-20 finance chiefs and central bankers meeting on April 19 praised this month’s measures by the BOJ aimed at delivering 2 percent inflation within two years. They signaled Japan’s focus on supporting domestic demand was strong enough to allow them to ignore the side-effects on their own economies of a sliding yen. ‘More Confidence’ “Winning international understanding gives me more confidence to conduct monetary policy appropriately,� Kuroda told reporters after the meeting. “We will continue our qualitative and quantitative easing for the next two years.� The yen has dropped 5.6 percent in April after falling for the previous six months, the longest losing streak since 2001. The BOJ is scheduled to deliver its next policy statement in Tokyo on April 26 after announcing larger-than-expected stimulus measures at its previous gathering on April 4. Futures traders increased bets the yen will weaken against the dollar, figures from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission showed last week. The difference in the number of wagers by hedge funds and other large speculators on a decline compared with those on a gain -- so-called net shorts -- was 93,411 on April 16, compared with 77,697 a week earlier. Napolitano Reelected The euro earlier rose as much as 0.5 percent against the dollar as Napolitano was reelected on April 20, resolving an impasse after the country’s divided Parliament failed to agree on a candidate in the first five rounds of voting. The resignation of Democratic Party leader Pier Luigi Bersani increased optimism that Napolitano can convince the remnants of Bersani’s Democrats to join a coalition with Silvio Berlusconi’s People of Liberty party and end a stalemate that’s left Italy without a new government eight weeks after elections. “As long as we can avoid the inevitability of elections, this weekend’s development is positive in that regard, then, that provides a little bit of support under the euro,� National Australia Bank’s Attrill said. The won dropped the most in two weeks versus the dollar on speculation policy makers will favor depreciation to support South Korean exporters as the yen’s slide to a four-year low makes Japanese rivals more competitive. “The G-20 meeting raised concerns that there’s room for the yen to weaken further, which may hurt South Korea’s export competitiveness,� said Jeon Seung Ji, an analyst at Samsung Futures Inc. in Seoul. “Speculation that authorities may step in to weaken the won to protect exporters is pushing the currency lower.� The won fell 0.3 percent to close at 1,119.05 per dollar after dropping as much as 0.7 percent, most since April 8. To contact the reporters on this story: Candice Zachariahs in Sydney at czachariahs2@bloomberg.net; Lukanyo Mnyanda in Edinburgh at lmnyanda@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Paul Dobson at pdobson2@bloomberg.net

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