Euro weaker on lower consumer prices

Euro weaker on lower consumer prices

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The euro was weaker versus the US dollar and the yen Friday on a report from the European office of statistics which showed that consumer prices in the European Union were down 0.7 percent from last year, while at the same time US consumer prices were unchanged in July from June but were down 2.1 percent from last year at the same time, according to the US Labor Department.

In late morning trade in New York, the dollar traded at $1.4243 to the euro while the yen was at ¥134.6888 to the shared currency.

The yen was slightly higher versus the greenback earlier, but by late morning it had dropped its gains and was trading at ¥94.565 to the dollar.

The South African rand, meanwhile, weakened in relation to the US dollar after the central bank in South Africa unexpectedly cut interest rates by 0.5 percent to 7 percent, the lowest the rate has been in over three years, on concerns that the economy there contracted for a third consecutive quarter in the quarter ending in June.

The rand traded at R8.0855 to the greenback at around 11:15 a.m. in New York.

The Canadian dollar also was down versus its US counterpart after earlier gains on a 1.9 percent gain in factory sales in June, against an expected decline.

The loonie was a C$1.0913 to the greenback after US equities markets declined.