Tag: earthquake

New Zealand’s government to buy quake damaged houses

New Zealand’s government has offered to buy thousands of properties in areas in Christchurch, the country’s second largest city, because of the damage done by recent earthquakes. The government has set up a website, www.landcheck.org.nz, to help property owners work out which zone they are in.

Dollar Falls Versus Yen

Monday’s large aftershock came exactly a month after an earthquake and tsunami flattened towns and damaged a nuclear plant in northern Japan. It’s the second strong aftershock to hit northern Japan in less than a week.

The dollar was worth 84.75 Japanese yen in late afternoon trading in New York, down from 84.89 Japanese yen late Friday.

The Japanese yen is considered a safe-haven currency and tends to get stronger during times of turmoil. Days after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, the yen reached a new record high against the dollar.