08.04.201115:10:00UTC+00Battered Dollar Extends 15-Month Low Versus Euro

The dollar ended a brutal week at its lowest in more than a year versus a number of major rivals, after the European Central Bank threw down the gauntlet at the Federal Reserve by tightening monetary policy on Thursday.

On Friday, the dollar continued its downward spiral against the euro, after German export data suggested that ECB will have room to further raise interest rates in order to fight inflation.

The Fed, meanwhile, is expected to keep its $600 billion bond program in place through June, and keep interest rates near zero for the forseeable future.

The dollar dropped to a 15-month low of $1.4443 versus the euro in early dealing, and was able to tread water from there.

In economic news, German exports rose at the fastest pace in five months in February, recovering strongly from a decline in the first month of the year, the Federal Statistical Office said.

Here in the U.S., wholesale inventories continued to creep higher in February, rising in line with economist estimates, according to figures released by the Commerce Department on Friday.

The figures showed total wholesale inventories of $438 billion at the end of February, up 1.0 percent from the revised January figure.

The buck took back a small fraction of its recent losses versus the sterling, edging up to $1.6340 from a yearly low of $1.6427.

Despite some mixed data on Canadian employment, the dollar hit a new three-year low of C$0.9626 against the loonie.

The Canadian economy lost 1,500 jobs in March, falling far short of expectations even as the national unemployment rate edged down to 7.7 percent, Statistics Canada reported Friday.

There was little movement for the dollar against the yen, with the buck staying near a 5-month high above Y85. Yesterday's earthquake in Japan is believed not to have done much further damage to the nation's economy.