April 23 (Bloomberg) -- The euro fell to near the lowest level in a year against the dollar on speculation international officials will express concerns that Greece’s escalating debt crisis will threaten the global recovery.
The euro slid versus all 16 major counterparts as policy makers from the Group of 20 industrial and developing nations meet in Washington today. Europe’s currency headed for a third weekly drop against the yen after the European Union raised its estimate for Greece’s deficit and Moody’s Investors Service cut the nation’s debt rating. The dollar traded close to a one-week high versus the yen before reports forecast to show improving orders for long-lasting goods and new home sales in the U.S. “Chances are G-20 officials will discuss Greece because it could lead to a global financial issue,” said Takashi Kudo<http://search.bloomberg.com/search?q=Takashi+Kudo&site=wnews&client=wnews&proxystylesheet=wnews&output=xml_no_dtd&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&filter=p&getfields=wnnis&sort=date:D:S:d1>, general manager of market information at NTT SmartTrade Inc., a unit of Nippon Telegraph & Telephone Corp., in Tokyo. “Markets seem to be mounting pressure on Greece to get a bailout, with the euro weakening. Risk aversion is causing the dollar and yen to be bought.” The euro fell to $1.3216 at 10:53 a.m. in Tokyo from $1.3295 in New York yesterday, and touched $1.3202, the lowest level since April 30, 2009. The 16-nation currency declined to 123.42 yen from 124.28 yen. The dollar traded at 93.38 yen from 93.49 yen, after reaching 93.63 yen, the highest since April 14. The yen typically strengthens in times of financial turmoil as Japan’s trade surplus makes the currency attractive as it means the nation does not have to rely on overseas lenders. The dollar benefits as the world’s main reserve currency. G-20 Meeting The euro declined after the EU lifted its estimate for Greece’s deficit to 13.6 percent of gross domestic product. The nation’s leaders met with European counterparts to discuss proposed aid and demonstrators protested austerity measures. Ireland overtook the southern European nation as the EU member with the largest deficit, at 14.3 percent. “There are a number of countries who could easily go down the same path, and the ability for Europe to bail out all of those economies is, I would imagine, quite limited,” said Adam Carr<http://search.bloomberg.com/search?q=Adam%0ACarr&site=wnews&client=wnews&proxystylesheet=wnews&output=xml_no_dtd&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&filter=p&getfields=wnnis&sort=date:D:S:d1>, a senior economist at ICAP Australia Ltd. in Sydney. “A resolution is needed quite quickly. Otherwise, the euro is going to continue to weaken.” G-20 finance chiefs including U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner and European Central Bank President Jean- Claude Trichet may also intensify pressure on China to revalue the yuan at today’s talks, which Geithner called an “avenue for advancing U.S. interests” on the Chinese currency. ‘Renewed Optimism’ The dollar rose to a seven-week high versus the Swiss franc on speculation signs of U.S. growth will increase. Durable goods orders gained 0.2 percent in March after advancing a revised 0.9 percent the previous month, according to the median estimate of economists in a Bloomberg News survey. Sales of new homes rose 5.5 percent to an annual pace of 325,000 in March, according to a separate survey. The Commerce Department is due to release both reports today. “Renewed optimism about the strength of the U.S. economy is adding to the dollar’s appeal,” said Mike Jones<http://search.bloomberg.com/search?q=Mike+Jones&site=wnews&client=wnews&proxystylesheet=wnews&output=xml_no_dtd&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&filter=p&getfields=wnnis&sort=date:D:S:d1>, a currency strategist at Bank of New Zealand Ltd. in Wellington. “Tonight’s data is all about quality, not quantity, with U.S. durable goods orders due for release.” The U.S. currency climbed to 1.0828 Swiss francs from 1.0781, after advancing to 1.0850 francs, the strongest since March 2. British Pound The pound may advance to a two-month high against the dollar after the U.K. currency stayed above its 20-day moving average, Ueda Harlow Ltd. said, citing trading patterns. Sterling is also poised to extend gains after rising above its 60-day moving average, a key level of resistance where sell orders may be clustered, said Toshiya Yamauchi<http://search.bloomberg.com/search?q=Toshiya+Yamauchi&site=wnews&client=wnews&proxystylesheet=wnews&output=xml_no_dtd&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&filter=p&getfields=wnnis&sort=date:D:S:d1>, a senior foreign-exchange analyst at the online currency-trading company. An ichimoku chart, a technical indicator used to gauge momentum, also points to further strength, he said. “Technical charts are signaling an acceleration in rising momentum for the British currency,” Tokyo-based Yamauchi said yesterday. “The currency may test the $1.56 level, which represents the top of the cloud on a daily ichimoku chart.” The pound traded at $1.5345 from $1.5378. It last traded above $1.56 on Feb. 18. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=ad29svnbEpL4&pos=2 -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups ""GLOBAL SPECULATORS"" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/globalspeculators?hl=en.
