Midday trade in New York: euro hits five-week high

The euro notched a five-week high against the dollar on Thursday, extending gains a day after the US Federal Reserve signalled ultra-low interest rates for years to come, while US jobs and manufacturing data fed risk appetite and supported the euro.
"In the near term we're probably also looking at more dollar weakness," said Omer Esiner, chief market analyst at Commonwealth Foreign Exchange in Washington, D.C. "They have essentially eased policy further, and that is a negative for the dollar across the board." The euro advanced to a session high of $1.3184 before trimming gains to trade more recently at $1.3158. The euro also hit a five-week high against the yen on Thursday, but by mid-morning the single currency pulled back. The euro last traded at 101.76 yen after earlier rising as high as 102.20 yen.