By: Barbara Zigah
The Euro continues to cling to recent gains against the U.S. Dollar, holding steady above the 8-month trough struck earlier in the week. As reported at 11:44 a.m. (JST) in Tokyo, the Euro was trading against the greenback at $1.3585, retreating from an overnight high of $1.3669 and Monday’s low of $1.3360. Thus far this month, the Euro has lost approximately 5.5% of its value against the U.S. Dollar. Investors are still hopeful that the Eurozone’s policy makers will have made some headway towards resolution of the Eurozone’s debt problems.
Analysts expect that sentiment could be waning however, as more crucial votes for the bolstering of the EFSF begin today in Finland, followed by a German Parliamentary vote tomorrow; neither outcome is assured, however.
As the month’s end approaches, the Yen is again rising, as exporters from Japan sell their U.S. Dollar and Euro holdings to satisfy their accounts. Marker players also said that Japanese investors were selling Euros, the proceeds from coupon payments of their holdings in foreign bonds. The Yen rose 0.5% against the Euro, trading at 103.97 Yen; earlier this week, the Euro had struck a 10-year low against the Yen, trading at 101.95 Yen.