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Japan’s weaker yen a blessing to some, burden for others

Parker J. Allen, right, and his mother and business partner Linda Allen pose for a photo before an interview with The Associated Press at Linda Allen's home in Ogawamachi, northwest of Tokyo, Friday, May 6, 2022. The Japanese yen has weakened, trading in recent weeks at 20-year lows of 130 yen to the U.S. dollar just when prices of oil and other goods are surging due to the war in Ukraine, and that's a mixed blessing. The news on the weakening yen hasn’t been all bad for some including Allen. Interest is picking up, said Allen, who runs a business finding bargain-priced homes in the Japanese countryside and suburban Tokyo for foreign buyers looking for a second home or office. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)

Parker J. Allen, right, and his mother and business partner Linda Allen pose for a photo before an interview with The Associated Press at Linda Allen's home in Ogawamachi, northwest of Tokyo, Friday, May 6, 2022. The Japanese yen has weakened, trading in recent weeks at 20-year lows of 130 yen to the U.S. dollar just when prices of oil and other goods are surging due to the war in Ukraine, and that's a mixed blessing. The news on the weakening yen hasn’t been all bad for some including Allen. Interest is picking up, said Allen, who runs a business finding bargain-priced homes in the Japanese countryside and suburban Tokyo for foreign buyers looking for a second home or office. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)

In this image made from a Zoom video, Tran Ha Van, a Vietnamese living in Kashiwa, just outside of northeastern Tokyo, speaks in an interview with The Associated Press on Tuesday, May 17, 2022. The Japanese yen has weakened, trading in recent weeks at 20-year lows of 130 yen to the U.S. dollar just when prices of oil and other goods are surging due to the war in Ukraine, and that's a mixed blessing. Tran Ha Van isn’t at all happy about what’s happening with the yen. (AP Photo)

FILE - A woman wearing a protective mask walks in front of an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei 225 index and Japanese yen and U.S. dollar exchange rate at a securities firm on May 9, 2022, in Tokyo. The Japanese yen has weakened, trading in recent weeks at 20-year lows of 130 yen to the U.S. dollar just when prices of oil and other goods are surging due to the war in Ukraine, and that's a mixed blessing. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, File)

Parker J. Allen poses for a photo at a home of his mother and business partner Linda Allen before an interview with The Associated Press at Linda Allen's home in Ogawamachi, northwest of Tokyo, Friday, May 6, 2022. The Japanese yen has weakened, trading in recent weeks at 20-year lows of 130 yen to the U.S. dollar just when prices of oil and other goods are surging due to the war in Ukraine, and that's a mixed blessing. The news on the weakening yen hasn’t been all bad for some including Allen. Interest is picking up, said Allen, who runs a business finding bargain-priced homes in the Japanese countryside and suburban Tokyo for foreign buyers looking for a second home or office. (AP Photo/Hiro Komae)

A financial monitor shows Japanese yen's exchange rate against the U.S. dollar at a currency dealing house in Tokyo on April 28, 2022. The Japanese yen has weakened, trading in recent weeks at 20-year lows of 130 yen to the U.S. dollar just when prices of oil and other goods are surging due to the war in Ukraine, and that's a mixed blessing. (Kyodo News via AP)

Japan’s weaker yen a blessing to some, burden for others