NEW YORK: The euro fell to a four-month low against the US dollar on Thursday, and helped the US dollar index rise to a seven-month highs, after European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said the bank did not discuss ending bond purchases.
The ECB did not discuss at its latest meeting either ending its asset-buying program or extending it, Draghi said. "Draghi pushed back strongly against the idea that they could discuss tapering or adjusting QE and that weighed on the euro," said Vassili Serebriakov, FX strategist at Credit Agricole in New York. "The markets took (Draghi's comments) as a little bit dovish," he said.
Bloomberg had reported earlier this month that ECB policymakers were building consensus that quantitative easing would need to be wound down gradually when the central bank decides to end the program.
The euro was last down 0.18 percent against the US dollar to $1.0952, after falling as low as $1.0935, the lowest since June 24.
The dollar index against a basket of six major currencies , which has a large euro component, jumped to a high of 98.241, the highest since March 10. The greenback was also supported by relatively hawkish comments by New York Fed President William Dudley late on Wednesday.
Dudley, a permanent voter on policy and a close ally of Fed Chair Janet Yellen, said that the US central bank will likely raise interest rates later this year if the US economy remains on track.
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