04-16-2012
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bloomberg, By Catarina Saraiva and David Goodman
The euro dropped to less than $1.30 for the first time in two months as Spanish bond yields touched a 2012 high after a minister called on the European Central Bankto do more to stem debt-market turmoil.
The 17-nation currency dropped for a second day against the yen and reached the lowest since 2010 versus the pound. The yen strengthened against all of its 16 most-traded counterparts. China’s yuan weakened as the central bank widened the currency’s trading band. Higher-yielding currencies trimmed losses against the dollar after U.S. retail sales rose in March and yields on Spanish government securities pared increases.
“There’s a sense that there’s plenty of uncertainty to go around as far as Europe’s concerned,” said Alan Ruskin, global head of Group-of-10 foreign-exchange strategy at Deutsche Bank AG in New York. “The long risk trade is very nervous, and the market has shown a capacity to squeeze the most vulnerable positions.” A long position is a bet on a gain.
