The dollar fell against the yen and euro as the International Monetary Fund said there's a risk the U.S. housing slump will cause further financial-market turmoil.
The currency declined against the Swiss franc and British
pound before industry reports this week that economists forecast
will show falling U.S. home prices and sales. The Australian
dollar rose to its highest in 24 years against the dollar after
minutes of the central bank's last meeting signaled policy
makers considered raising rates.
The yen held gains after the Bank of Japan kept its benchmark interest rate at 0.5 percent, in line with the median estimate in a survey. The Federal Reserve has cut rates seven times since September to 2 percent.
The euro gained against the dollar before a report today
that may show German investors grew less pessimistic in May. The ZEW
Center for European Economic Research will say its index of investor
and analyst expectations rose to minus 37 this month from minus 40.7 in
April, according to a survey. A negative reading means pessimists
outnumber optimists.