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US dollar strengthens around the world

18 May 2009 14:57 (UTC +04:00)

Bakuâ€“ APA-Economics. The dollar strengthened against the euro as stocks extended their declines around the world, spurring demand the U.S. currency as a haven, Bloomberg reported.
The dollar also gained versus the Swiss franc and the pound as the MSCI World Index slid for a second day and U.S. stock- index futures fell. The euro dropped after European Central Bank council member Axel Weber warned against â€œexaggeratingâ€ recent signals the economy is stabilizing. Indiaâ€™s rupee climbed the most in two decades on optimism Prime Minister Manmohan Singhâ€™s election victory will help his party implement reforms.
â€œThe broader trend is one of continued risk aversion,â€ said Simon Derrick, chief currency strategist at Bank of New York Mellon Corp. in London. â€œItâ€™s less to do with a positive for the dollar than with people pulling away from the other markets.â€
The dollar appreciated to $1.3473 per euro as of 8:36 a.m. in London, from $1.3495 in New York at the end of last week. It was at 95.36 yen, from 95.21 yen. The yen was little changed at 128.49 yen, from 128.43.
The MSCI World Index dropped 0.8 percent, after falling last week for the first time since March. Standard & Poorâ€™s 500 Index futures expiring in June declined 0.1 percent. U.S. Treasuries gained, with the 10-year note yield falling two basis points.