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Euro climbs to fresh dollar peak Euro climbs to fresh dollar peak
(about 1 hour later)
The dollar has slid to a fresh low against the euro, as negative views of the US economic outlook continue to take their toll. The euro has hit a fresh high against the dollar as negative views of the US economic outlook continue to take their toll on the US currency.
In afternoon European trade, a steady sell-off of the US currency meant that one euro was worth $1.456. A steady sell-off of the dollar meant that one euro was worth $1.457 at one point, while the pound hit $2.09 for the first time since the 1980s.
Huge losses at banking giant Citigroup, through investments in bad US home loans, have sparked fears for the health of the banking sector. A steady stream of bad news coming from the US mortgage sector has sparked fears for the health of the economy.
These fears have prompted investors to sell dollars and buy euros or pounds.These fears have prompted investors to sell dollars and buy euros or pounds.
Consumer confidence data set to be released later could help influence the direction of the greenback, analysts say. The Bank of England is widely tipped to leave interest rates on hold at 5.75% when it meets later this week, while the recovery in the eurozone economy is still robust enough for analysts to expect rates to increase further in the region.
But further confessions from banks of previously undisclosed losses linked to the meltdown in the US mortgage market will outweigh economic data at this point, they add. These factors have leant support to the pound and euro, which are currently offering a better rate of return than the dollar.
No silver lining
The dollar has been sliding since the US Federal Reserve chopped interest rates from 5.25% to 4.75% in September.
Any additional corporate earnings write-downs from the sub-prime crisis during the summer would be expected to weigh on the dollar James Hughes, CMC Markets
Rates were reduced further in October to 4.5% in an effort to kickstart the faltering housing and credit markets and make borrowing cheaper to encourage consumer spending in the run up to the key Christmas shopping period.
The Fed signalled that it would adopt a wait-and-see approach to the future direction of interest rates.
But the continued dollar sell-off suggests that the market believes that the Fed will be forced to intervene and cut rates further to prevent the US economy from tipping into a recession.
This reaction stems from the recent emergence of hefty losses at global banking giants, such as Citigroup, Merrill Lynch and UBS, linked to investments backed by US home loans which have gone sour, analysts observe.
This has led to worries that banks may be sitting on even bigger losses, which ultimately could constrain their ability to lend to individuals or businesses and thus hamper economic growth.
"Any additional corporate earnings write-downs from the sub-prime crisis during the summer would be expected to weigh on the dollar," said James Hughes at CMC Markets."Any additional corporate earnings write-downs from the sub-prime crisis during the summer would be expected to weigh on the dollar," said James Hughes at CMC Markets.