-- Japan government officials say new steps against strong yen to be unveiled as early as next week -- Officials say steps likely to include boosting of fund to encourage overseas M&A activity, resource acquisition -- Steps likely to be finalized next week for inclusion in extra budget, they say -- Steps won't include controversial forex tax, they add By Takashi Mochizuki and Tatsuo Ito Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES TOKYO (Dow Jones)--Japan is set to unveil a new round of measures against the persistently strong yen as early as next week, government officials said Friday. The steps follow a package unveiled in August and are likely to include an increase in funds for encouraging Japanese firms to take advantage of the strong yen to acquire overseas businesses and natural resources, the officials said. But a controversial tax on currency transactions to discourage speculative yen buying will not be among the new measures, they added. The government has come under increasing pressure from major Japanese companies and business associations to take further action against the soaring yen, which shrinks exporters' repatriated profits and makes domestically produced goods less cost competitive abroad, prompting manufacturers to shift more of their operations overseas. Since funding for the new measures will need to be included in an upcoming extra budget, they are likely to be finalized next week when the next session of parliament is expected to convene. Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda has said he will submit the budget to the next parliament. Senior figures in the ruling Democratic Party of Japan have also urged the government to step up its efforts to deal with the yen, which is still hovering near a record high of Y75.94 to the dollar hit on Aug. 19. http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20111014-707888.html