Forex counters busy with people buying dollars

The soaring yen has prompted people in Japan to flock to foreign exchange counters to purchase dollars or other currencies.

In Chiba City, east of Tokyo, many people rushed to a bank to exchange money on Friday.

The bank said many people sold between 100,000 and 200,000 yen for dollars or euros. One customer bought about 15,000 dollars.

The bank said it received three times more customers than usual.

A woman in her 60s said she'll travel to the United States during the New Year holidays, so she thought today would be a good time to buy dollars.

A male customer said he's taking his family to Hawaii during the summer holidays next year, so he bought about 2,300 dollars. He said that although the yen's appreciation will have a negative impact on Japan as a whole, he's happy about the purchase.

A teller said the staff has been so busy that they haven't been able to take lunch breaks for 2 days in a row.

He said customers are seeking to profit, following reports on the prolonged recession and deflation.