German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder said US, European and Asian economies would remain on a strong recovery track in 2005, but growth could be hurt by a sharp fall in the dollar, a Japanese newspaper said on Saturday. The dollar's recent decline has been prompted by imbalances in the global economy, he said, adding that European countries, whose current accounts are mostly balanced, were not the cause of the decline.
Schroeder's comments were published in Japanese in the Nihon Keizai Shimbun business daily. The newspaper said he made the comments in a written response to the paper's questions.
The dollar slid to a record low against the euro on Friday amid disappointing US jobs data and a perception that the United States was in no hurry to stem the dollar's fall.
The dollar crumbled to $1.3460 per euro, according to Reuters data, a decline of nearly 1.4 percent and a new record low. It also fell more than 1 percent against other currencies.
Schroeder is due to visit Asia next week. He arrives in China on Monday, leaving for Japan on Wednesday before returning to Germany on Friday evening.