Euro sinks briefly to 11-year low vs US dollar

Tokyo

THE euro touched an 11-year low against the US dollar on Monday after anti-austerity party Syriza swept to victory in Greece's general election, sparking fears of an exit from the eurozone. The common currency was trading at US$1.1174 after dipping to US$1.1088 in Tokyo in early morning trade, the lowest level since September 2003. The euro had tumbled to an 11-year low of US$1.1115 in New York on Friday, after the European Central Bank (ECB) unveiled a vast bond-buying programme to try to kick-start the struggling eurozone economy. The unit also fell to 131.39 yen in Tokyo on Monday against 132.03 yen, while it slipped to 0.9833 against the Swiss franc, from 0.9876 on Friday.

Leftist party Syriza pulled off a historic win in Greece's election on Sunday, becoming the first anti-austerity party in power in Europe. The victory presents a new challenge to the debt-hit country's international bailout programme and has ignited fears about the possibility of Greece exiting from the eurozone.