The Bank of Japan is buying government bonds in unlimited amounts at a fixed yield for a second straight day. The yen, meanwhile, recovered somewhat on Tuesday after its sharp fall on Monday.

The BOJ is buying bonds at a yield of a quarter of a percent in an effort to keep long-term interest rates from rising. It said it will keep doing this through Thursday.
It's the first time the central bank has done this on consecutive days.

The BOJ has been trying to keep the 10-year yield below 0.25 percent as part of its ultra-easy monetary policy. Traders have been selling off Japanese government bonds as the US Federal Reserve says it plans to raise its interest rates.

When bonds are purchased in the market, their prices rise and their yields fall. The BOJ's operations are therefore aimed at keeping yields down.

The BOJ's moves sharply weakened the Japanese currency on Monday. The yen fell below 125 per dollar, the lowest level in over six and a half years. But some traders sold dollars on Tuesday to take profits from the yen's slide.