Forex - US dollar gains vs yen after Bank of Japan leaves key rate unchanged

SYDNEY (Thomson Financial) - The US dollar strengthened against the yen after the Bank of Japan on Thursday kept its overnight call rate target unchanged at 0.5 percent for the sixth straight meeting, as widely expected by the market.

At 2.17 pm (0417 GMT) in Sydney, the dollar was trading at 122.35 yen, up from 122.29 yen in early Asia trading, while the euro was at 1.3754 dollars, up from 1.3748 earlier.

The Japanese central bank said the vote by its nine-member policy board was eight to one, with Atsushi Mizuno voting against the proposal by BoJ governor Toshihiko Fukui to leave the overnight call rate at the current level.