The yen briefly fell to the lower 149 level against the U.S. dollar in London trading Tuesday, hitting a fresh 32-year low.

After trading in the upper 148 zone in Tokyo earlier in the day, the yen continued its slide to around 149.30, the lowest since August 1990, as market players sold the yen for the dollar in anticipation of wider interest rate differentials between Japan and the United States, dealers said.

Even though Japanese authorities' intervention to prop up the yen on Sept. 22 saw it rise to the 140 level from 145.90, the impact was short-lived, with the Japanese currency falling nearly 9 in less than a month.

In earlier trading in Tokyo, the yen had firmed to the upper 148 zone after hitting 149.09 in New York overnight, with Japanese Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki warning that Tokyo stands ready to take "appropriate" steps against volatility in the market, the dealers said.

But downward pressure on the yen remains as market players reckon that the U.S. Federal Reserve is set to continue raising interest rates, in sharp contrast with the Bank of Japan's commitment to its ultraloose monetary policy, they said.

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