The dollar remained within sight of its record low against the euro on Thursday as it struggled in the wake of mixed US data that did little to allay market concerns about a slowdown in the US economy.
The dollar fell to within a whisker of its record low against the euro on Wednesday after softer-than-expected US housing data contrasted with a strong reading on business sentiment in the euro zone.
It struggled despite a surprisingly strong reading on US durable goods orders. "There wasn't any decisive factor to alter views that the US economy is slowing down. I don't think there was anything to alter a bearish market trend against the dollar," said a trader for a Japanese bank.
In contrast with the mixed US indicators on Wednesday, euro zone data showed German business sentiment surged close to a record high in April. "This confirms that Europe's economy is solid and will support euro buying. I think the euro will make a try for $1.37," the Japanese bank trader said.
The euro stood at $1.3650 as of 0510 GMT, up slightly from late US trading on Wednesday. The single European currency had climbed as high as $1.3667 on electronic trading platform EBS on Wednesday, just shy of the currency's all-time peak at $1.3670.
The dollar slipped to 118.65 yen compared to around 118.75 yen in late New York trading. The New Zealand dollar stood at $0.7480, easing from Wednesday's high of $0.7490, near a 22-year peak of $0.7493 struck last week. It fell after the central bank raised interest rates by a quarter of a point to 7.75 percent on Thursday but warned that the currency was at "exceptionally and unjustifiably high levels".
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