The dollar on Friday finished near its lowest levels for the day and down sharply on the week, hit hard by cyclical worries tied to high oil prices as well as structural concerns related to the huge US current account deficit.
The euro has gained nearly 1.5 percent since Oct. 15 and was trading late Friday in New York at an eight-month high of US$1.2648, up from US$1.2616 late Thursday.
The US dollar fell to a four-month low against the yen, trading at ?07.26 yen late Friday from ¥107.45 a day earlier.
The Swiss franc was at an eight-year high, with the dollar trading at SF1.2145, down from SF1.2176. Meanwhile, the pound was slightly lower at US$1.8248 from US$1.8281.
As widely traded currencies broke loose of ranges that had bound them since the spring, many banks downgraded their outlooks for the dollar during the week, including UBS, BNP Paribas, Barclays, Bank of America and CSFB.
The dollar had been steady overnight, but after it failed to recover any ground in early New York trading, it continued its downward slide. A new all-time high oil price gave extra impetus to those losses. The one-month crude futures contract was at US$54.17 per barrel in late New York trading.
The dollar also dipped to a 12-year low against its Canadian counterpart, trading at C$1.2342 late on Friday from C$1.2433 late Thursday. Higher oil prices and general dollar weakness were the main factors behind the Canadian currency's advance.
The dollar was also pushed down on continued concerns about the US trade imbalance, which have been repeatedly highlighted by Federal Reserve officials.
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