Dollar Plummets to New Low Against Euro

Growing speculation that the U.S. government might find the ongoing dollar slide opportune and rising concern about the massive current account deficit in the U.S. sent the dollar diving to a record three-month low against the euro on Wednesday. The dollar tumbled to $1.1839 against the euro in London early in the session. "It’s the same old story: we see a weak dollar as a strong euro or yen," equities expert Rainer Sartoris of private bank HSBC Trinkhaus & Burkhardt told Reuters. "The dominant view on the market is that the U.S. is politically interested in a weak dollar," he said with an eye on the U.S. deficit expected to reach $570 billion this year. Comments from several European finance ministers on Tuesday, expressing little concern about the current strength of the euro, did little to stem developments. Market analysts are counting on the fact that the Europeans will not oppose the appreciation of their currency. "Europe seems to be quite comfortable with a euro between 1.15 and 1.20 dollars," analyst Kalam Sharma of investment bank Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein said.