he yen's selling pressure comes amid escalating tensions in the Middle East, which prompted safe haven flows into the greenback. Traders are also viewing recent moves by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's administration as a sign of tolerance for yen weakness. In overseas trading on Tuesday, the yen fell into the 163 range for the first time since December 1986. As of Wednesday morning in Tokyo trading, the yen was weaker by 0.4% at around 163.21 per dollar. "The USD/JPY pair continues to trade around recent four-decade highs, despite last week's soft U.S. inflation report," said Matthew Ryan, head of market strategy at global financial services firm Ebury. "Rising oil prices are a downside risk for the Japanese economy, a net importer of energy, and are acting to help keep the yen on the back foot."