LONDON: Worries over falling oil prices and the possibility of a British exit from the European Union drove the euro to a three-year low against the yen on Wednesday and sterling to a seven-year trough against the dollar.
Oil fell below $33 a barrel after Saudi Arabia ruled out production cuts and a report said U.S. crude stockpiles had hit a record high, souring investors' appetite for risier assets and boosting demand for safe havens such as the yen and Swiss franc.
Oil-rich Norway's crown took the biggest beating among developed-world currencies, falling by over 1.5 percent to a three-week trough against the dollar and also shedding 1 percent against the euro.
But sterling was not far behind, falling below $1.39 for the first time since early 2009 on persistent concerns that a June 23 referendum could lead to a "Brexit". The pound is anyway seen as a higher-risk play among developed-world currencies on account of Britain's large current account deficit and relatively high interest rates.
"We've got a combination of risk-negative markets, which commodities seem to be leading, and an element of independent sterling weakness on top of that," said RBC Capital Markets' head of currency strategy in London, Adam Cole, adding that Brexit risk would become a more important driver of global risk appetite as the referendum drew nearer.
The euro fell to an almost-three-year low of 122.465 yen , while the dollar also fell against the Japanese currency, trading at a 10-day low of 111.63 yen that took it close to a 15-month trough of 110.85 hit earlier in the month.
The Swiss franc, traditionally sought at times of market turmoil along with the yen, rose to a six-week high of 1.0894 francs per euro.
The euro has also tended to perform well at times of risk aversion in recent months, but it was down over half a percent against the dollar at $1.09575. That helped the dollar index reach a three-week high of 97.916.
"The euro is also getting dragged down a bit by the EU concerns, so if you're looking for a safe haven you're probably...more likely to choose the yen," said Rabobank currency strategist Jane Foley, in London.
Commodity currencies such as the Australian, New Zealand and Canadian dollars were all under pressure.
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