The yen climbed to the strongest in almost three months against the dollar as Asian stocks extended a global slump, prompting investors to unwind riskier investments funded by borrowing in Japan. The currency also rose as a government report showed companies invested at a faster pace than expected, adding to the Bank of Japan's case for raising interest rates. It extended gains to 9.7 percent in five days against the higher-yielding South African rand and 8.1 percent versus the New Zealand dollar as cut pared so-called carry trades, buying yen to pay loans. ``Anything high-yielding or risky is in the firing line against the yen,'' said Sean Callow, senior currency strategist at Westpac Banking Corp. in Singapore. ``We're seeing just how scared the market really is.'' The yen gained to 115.68 against the dollar at 6:43 a.m. in London after reaching 115.39, the strongest since Dec. 8, from 116.75 in New York on March 2. It also advanced to 152.21 per euro and reached 151.76, the highest since Nov. 24, from 154.06. The yen may rise to 115 this week, said Callow. Against the pound, the currency climbed 1.8 percent to a three-month high of 222.97. The yen rose to 15.4276 to the rand from 15.7502, 78.74 against the New Zealand dollar from 80.39 and 89.80 versus the Australian dollar from 91.36. Japan's currency has gained 4.3 percent against the dollar over the past five days. Speaking to reporters in Tokyo today, Japanese Finance Minister Koji Omi said foreign exchange rates should reflect economic fundamentals. He declined to comment on specific exchange rate levels. Investment rose 16.8 percent in the fourth-quarter from a year earlier, Ministry of Finance data showed. The figures may prompt the government to revise its gross domestic product estimate on March 12 from a preliminary report that showed the economy grew at an annual 4.8 percent pace, the fastest in more than two years.