NEW YORK: The US dollar fell against the euro Monday after data pointed to a manufacturing slowdown in the northeast region of the country.
The yen also continued to climb as traders sought safe havens amid worries about new deterioration in the eurozone.
At 2100 GMT the euro was buying $1.3143, compared to $1.3078 late Friday.
The dollar fell to 80.39 yen from 80.91 yen, and the euro dropped to 105.64 yen from 105.83 yen.
"Currency markets have started the week with a focus on European debt tensions. The jitters could be in part attributable to the anticipation of Spanish bond auctions later this week," said Vassili Serebriakov of Wells Fargo.
He noted that on the markets Spanish bond yields surged to 6.15 percent in recent days as worries grew that the country might not be able to maintain financial stability and could seek a bailout.
But the greenback also lost ground after the Federal Reserve index for manufacturing activity in New York took a sharp downturn this month, reflecting especially a surge in input prices for producers.
"With weakness in the manufacturing sector and housing market, it is difficult for investors to believe that the recovery is gaining and not losing momentum," said Kathy Lien of forex specialists GFT.
China's yuan meanwhile took a slight drop lower against the dollar after the country's central bank widened the daily trading band for the closely-controlled currency to 1.0 percent above and below a daily midpoint, double the previous 0.5 percent.
The yuan stood at 6.3163 to the dollar against Friday's close of 6.3030, with the weakening blamed on worries over the country's slowing economy.
Despite arguments, especially from Washington, that the yuan is undervalued, Lu Ting, China economist for Bank of America, said: "The consensus in Beijing is that the room for appreciation seems quite limited."
"With a falling trade and current account surplus, external pressure on China to appreciate... has been alleviated," he said in a report.
The dollar fell to 0.9145 Swiss francs from 0.9191 francs.
The British pound pushed higher to $1.5900 from $1.5844.
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