Euro, pound push higher

[NEW YORK] The euro and the pound moved higher against the US currency Monday in a generally quiet foreign exchange market.

The euro headed up to US$1.1315, a 0.3 per cent gain, and the pound 0.05 per cent to US$1.4279 from Friday's close.

"The low-yielding euro benefited from the broad pullback in investor risk appetite following the failed oil producers meeting over the weekend," said Commonwealth Foreign Exchange.

"Falling stocks and commodities force investors, who had sold the euro in favor of higher-yielding assets, to unwind those riskier bets and buy back the single currency."

An early surge in the yen came after the failure of the Doha oil producers meeting to agree Sunday on an output cap sent crude prices lower.

But as crude prices recovered, for only small losses by the end of the day, the yen headed back to Friday's levels against the US dollar and euro, and the Japanese currency also ended with slight losses.

AFP