Early trade in New York: Euro goes to new 2014 high against dollar

The euro jumped against the dollar on Thursday to its highest since December and to a peak against the yen not seen since January 23 after the European Central Bank signalled no need for new economic stimulus. ECB President Mario Draghi told a news conference ECB policymakers had concluded that economic conditions did not require shifts in monetary policy.
"The lack of any form of easing or action from the ECB helped the euro because it suggests that the economy is on track," said Vassili Serebriakov, currency strategist at BNP Paribas in New York. The euro rose as high as $1.3832 during Draghi's news conference before settling back to $1.3827, for a rise of 0.6 percent on the day. That peak is the highest since December. The euro also gained sharply against the yen, settling back to a 1.4 percent gain at 142.45 yen after touching a high of 142.63 yen last touched on January 23. The dollar index was off 0.25 percent to 80.109 after showing gains in earlier, overseas trading.