TOKYO: A continuously falling yen is not a benefit to the Japanese economy, because a weak currency has some negative side effects, Bank of Japan Deputy Governor Kikuo Iwata said on Tuesday. Iwata also said the BOJ is not relying on a weak yen to meet its 2 percent inflation target, in comments before the upper house fiscal and monetary policy committee. “We’re trying to achieve inflation accompanied by a rise in wages and productivity,” Iwata said. “You can’t simply say that the weaker the yen is the better for the economy, because there are some negative aspects of having a weak currency.” The link between monetary policy and currencies has become a sensitive topic in Japan after US President Donald Trump earlier this year said the BOJ is using the money supply to artificially weaken the currency. The Trump administration has since avoided direct criticism of Japan’s monetary policy, but there are still lingering worries about his preference for protectionist trade policies. The yen has fallen around 17 percent versus the dollar since April 2013, when the BOJ began buying massive amounts of government debt to lower yields and encourage inflation.