The Euro declined against 11 out of 16 other major currencies, amidst concerns about a possible restructuring of Greece’s debt. The Euro-USD exchange rate declined by 0.1562 percent to $ 1.4097. European finance ministers are expected to meet today and tomorrow in order to look into Greece’s request for an additional 110 billion Euros from the IMF. There are concerns that restructuring of Greece’s debt might eventually be required, which would be disastrous for the entire Euro zone. Furthermore, the arrest of the Managing Director of IMF, Dominique Strauss-Kkahn on charges of sexual assault in New York have increased the uncertainty over the IMF’s ability to solve Europe’s sovereign debt crisis, causing the Euro to lose some of its value.
The US Dollar advanced against 16 out of 17 other major currencies as the US economy showed signs of a better performance. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York’s economic index was 19.7 in May, after being at 21.7 in April. There are signs of the US economy performing solidly, which are helping to boost the US Dollar. The USD-JPY exchange rate increased by 0.1987 percent to 80.9555 Yen.
The AUS-JPY exchange rate fell. Australian home loan permits declined by 1.5 percent in March, signaling a slowing down of economic activity. On the other hand, the Yen advanced after reports showed that machine orders increased by 2.9 percent in March after dropping by 1.9 percent in February, a sign of the Japanese economy gradually recovering from the devastating earthquake. The AUD-JPY exchange rate was at 85.4221 Yen.