Euro Grows Against US Dollar

Added: April 29, 2010

In currency trading on Thursday, the euro moved towards a comeback while currencies around the world took a deep breath regarding Greek debt. Concerns still linger.

The Euro

The euro was able to improve on the US dollar during currency trading on Thursday. It moved ahead modestly against the dollar. This came after the euro zone officials stated that the needed aid package for Greece could be available to the country within days, not weeks. This helped to provides some relief for investors whose fears that the country's need for cash would be unable to be met soon enough.

In addition, a variety of information out helped to encourage investors to take on the more risk oriented currency. Information from European and US companies that came out on Thursday indicated that earnings are strong and improving. The European Union and Germany's also released encouraging data.

The euro zone officials bolstered investor opinions as they pushed the euro up from 12 month lows that it hit during trading on Wednesday. However, most investors and economists believe that any improvement in the euro will be given back numerous times while debt concerns remain the controlling force in the markets.

Also notable, Moody's Investors Service make note on Thursday that it could further downgrade Greece's debt rating. That downgrade is dependent on the outcome of the bailout plan for the country.

By The Numbers

Australian currencies moved up during trading on late Thursday as did Canadian currency. Because these currencies are considered more risky, investors began switching back to them.

By late in the trading day on Thursday, the euro moved from US $1.3201 on late Wednesday to US $1.3246. The US dollar moved from 94.09 yen to 94.06 yen in trading. The euro also moved against the yen from 124.21 yen to 124.60 yen. The UK pound also moved from a low of US $1.5191 to US $1.5324. Against the Swiss franc, the dollar moved from 1.0859 francs to 1.0826 francs by the end of trading.

Brazil Real

Also notable for the day was the movement in the Brazilian real. Investors turned to the real as the country's national bank increased the key interest rate. The bank made the move as a way of keeping the country's growing economy from overheating. This helped investors to believe that a global recovery is in fact in place. The real moved higher by 1 percent over the US dollar by late afternoon on Thursday. The Brazil central bank raised the key lending rate by 1.75 percentage points to 9.5 percent.

Canadian Dollar

Also bolstered by good numbers was the Canadian dollar. The dollar pared down its losses on Thursday mainly because oil prices improved and investors were turning to more risky assets for the day. The US dollar moved from C $1.0035 as of early morning trading on Thursday to C $1.0064 by late afternoon trading. The rate stood at C $1.0092 as of late Wednesday. Oil moved to $2 a barrel to help the improvement.

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Goldman Sachs Criminal Charges Could Hurt US Dollar

Posted by Jim Kelley at May 04, 2010 03:21 AM

The U.S. is in a precarious position. The amount of waste, fraud, faulty financial instruments and political unrest oozing from the country is almost painful to watch and read about. Bringing criminal charges against Goldman Sachs is a mistake. There are a lot of banks and financial institutions that are to blame for selling worthless derivatives. In fact, Barney Frank knew that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were pushing mortgages on people that should never have qualified for those mortgages. Those same mortgages were underliers for derivatives sold around the world. So should criminal charges be brought against Fannie Mae, Barney Frank…how about all of Wall Street? Turning on Goldman Sachs is a witch hunt and only adds to the uncertainty that the U.S. is really as strong and economically viable as it claims. The U.S. dollar cannot stand up under this kind of pressure for much longer. It generally will strengthen until countries like China, Brazil and India emerge as the new world order.

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Ironic Circumstances

Posted by John Miller at May 04, 2010 03:21 AM

A very ironic situation has developed in the Euro-zone over the debt crisis. The euro has been weakening as the European Union fails to find a solution to the debt crisis in several countries. Yet Greece has instituted austerity measures and so has Portugal. But the irony is that those austerity measure are making it more difficult for the countries to raise revenues needed to manage the debt. So Standard & Poor’s actually cut Greece and Portugal’s debt ratings recently because the austerity measures could slow down the rate of economic growth. It is like a spiral downward with no end in sight. Spain is has a much larger problem than either Greece or Portugal so the Euro-zone had better start making some good decisions about financial assistance quickly before the situation deteriorates even further.