The dollar pulled back versus the euro and touched a new 15-year low versus the yen on Wednesday after a successful Portuguese bond offering eased concerns about Europe's most debt-ridden nations.
On a day where the markets flashed back to th European credit crisis that gripped the markets this past Spring, the safe haven yen was once again the most fashionable option for skittish traders.
Portugal managed to sell 1.04 billion euros ($1.32 billion) of 2013 and 2021 debt, but the price it paid to attract investors rose. The yield on Portugal's 2021 bond was 5.973%, up from a rate near 4.15%.
Here in the US, the Federal Reserve's Beige Book said the nation's economy has shown "widespread signs" of slowing over the past month. Weakness has been most pronounced in the east and midwest.
The buck touched a weekly high of 1.2660 before dropping a cent to 1.2760 versus the euro.
Against the yen, the buck hit a new 15-year low of 83.33 in overnight dealing, then improved to 84 over the course of the day.
The buck slipped to a 3-week low versus the sterling, falling as low as 1.5535.
And the dollar came under heavy pressure against its Canadian counterpart after the Bank of Canada hiked its key interest rate from 0.75 percent to 1 percent.
The dollar slumped to C$1.0345, having bounced back and forth around that level for the better part of three months.
US mortgage application volume dropped slightly last week despite a notable increase in new home purchase demand, industry data revealed Wednesday morning.
Refinancing activity declined from levels near record highs, causing the Mortgage Bankers Association's Market Composite Index to drop for the first time in six weeks.
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