It was the ninth consecutive business day that the Bank of Japan (BoJ) has pumped emergency funds into the domestic financial system.

The central bank added 1.5 trillion yen to the money market in the morning and a further 400 billion yen in the afternoon.

The BoJ and other major central banks are working together to ensure a flow of liquidity due to a credit crunch that pushed Lehman Brothers into bankruptcy.

The latest injection came as Asian markets gave a cautious reaction to a deal by US lawmakers on a massive Wall Street bailout, amid doubts about whether it can halt the worst US financial crisis since the Great Depression. -- AFP