Dollar falls to one-month low

The dollar fell to a one-month low against the euro on speculation US reports today will show falling house prices are eroding…

The dollar fell to a one-month low against the euro on speculation US reports today will show falling house prices are eroding confidence among consumers.

The US currency also weakened against the British pound and the Swiss franc as traders pared bets that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates this year after seven cuts since September. The Australian dollar was near a 25-year high on speculation the country's higher-yielding government bonds will lure investors.

"The bias is for the dollar to weaken," said Tetsu Aikawa, deputy general manager of the capital markets division in Tokyo at Shinsei Bank, Japan's eighth-largest publicly listed lender. "US data certainly don't paint a flattering picture of the economy."

The dollar fell to $1.5818 against the euro, the lowest since April 24th, from $1.5770 late yesterday, before trading $1.5807 at 6.52am in London. The euro rose to 163.73 yen from 163.10 yen. The dollar bought 103.58 yen from 103.43 yesterday. It reached a two-week low of 102.74 yen on May 22nd.

The US currency fell to 1.0228 Swiss francs from 1.0245, and declined to $1.9842 against the British pound from $1.9821.