The Japanese yen tumbled today after the Standard and Poor’s downgraded Japan’s credit rating one step to AA- as the Japanese government hasn’t done enough to reduce the nation’s enormous debt.

S&P said in its statement:

The downgrade reflects our appraisal that Japan’s government debt ratios — already among the highest for rated sovereigns — will continue to rise further than we envisaged before the global economic recession hit the country.

The statement also said: “In our opinion, the Democratic Party of Japan-led government lacks a coherent strategy.”

USD/JPY surged from 82.16 to 82.69 as of 09:18 GMT today, while EUR/JPY jumped from 112.67 to 113.10.

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