By: Barbara Zigah
The common currency Euro fell versus the U.S. Dollar in New York trading following the announcement earlier today by Fitch credit rating agency that Irish sovereign debt would be downgraded to BBB+, a reflection of the additional costs necessary to bail out the Irish economy and their troubled banking sector.
The U.S. Dollar has strengthened this week, largely as a result of higher yields in U.S. Treasury notes, though there is some investor wariness ahead of today’s 30-year bond auction. As reported at 9:38 a.m. (EST), the Euro traded against the greenback at $1.3195, a decline of .4%. The U.S. Dollar Index, which measures the greenback’s strength against other major currencies, has gained nearly .7% so far this week and was last at 80.271 .DXY, above the 100-day moving average.
The greenback is also moving higher against the Japanese Yen, trading at 84.04 Yen, an increase of .7%; it had earlier struck 84.31 Yen on the EBS platform. According to data compiled over the last three trading sessions, the greenback is paced to see a 1.7% gain against the Yen, the largest such gain in nearly a quarter. Investors expect to see some resistance near 84.40 Yen.