The euro fell against all of its most-traded counterparts today despite an agreement brokered by the European Union to help Greece weather its debt crisis.
The currency slid as a statement issued by EU leaders left open how the EU would respond to a fresh wave of speculative attacks against Greece or countries such as Spain and Portugal, which are also struggling to cut their budget deficits.
The euro dropped 1 per cent against the US dollar to $1.3606 in New York, from $1.3737 yesterday. It also slid 1.1 per cent to 122.22 yen from 123.56 yesterday.
"Euro-area member states will take determined and coordinated action if needed to safeguard financial stability in the euro area as a whole," EU President Herman Van Rompuy told reporters today in Brussels.
"We fully support the efforts of the Greek government and their commitment to do whatever is necessary including adopting additional measures."
The euro has now fallen 5 per cent against the dollar so far this year on concern that nations with the biggest debt burdens may struggle to meet their obligations.
Earlier European stocks retreated, erasing earlier gains, as investors awaited further details on the EU’s agreement on Greece's debt crisis.
The Dow Jones Stoxx 600 Index fell 0.4 per cent to 239.94 in London after climbing as
much as 1 per cent earlier.
The index has lost 7.8 per cent from this year's high on January 19th amid concern Greece, Spain and Portugal will struggle to curb their budget deficits.