US focus: Euro declines as debt concern persists; Australian Dollar rises to record

The euro slumped against the dollar as European Union leaders cut the startup capital for a program for future emergency aid, stoking concern about governments’ efforts to quell the debt crisis.
EU leaders pared the fund’s paid-in capital as of 2013 to 16 billion euros ($23 billion), less than the 40 billion euros foreseen in a March 21 accord. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said it will take the euro years to recover from the “sins of the past.”
The shared currency fell from almost its highest level in four months against the U.S. currency as a major European clearing house said Portuguese government bonds will no longer be eligible as collateral in certain transactions.
LCH Clearnet Ltd., Europe’s biggest clearing house, said Portuguese government bonds will no longer be eligible for delivery in any of its RepoClear euro general collateral baskets after the nation’s debt was downgraded by Standard & Poor’s yesterday. The exclusion takes effect from Monday, LCH said in a statement on its website.
New Zealand’s currency touched the highest in almost a month against the dollar as Reserve Bank Governor Alan Bollard said the nation’s economy will get a boost next year.
The Australian dollar strengthened to the highest level versus its U.S. counterpart since foreign-exchange controls ended in 1983.
The yen headed for a 0.7% weekly loss versus the dollar and a 0.2% decline against the euro, in the week following the Group of Seven nations’ sale of yen to weaken the currency and support Japan’s recovery from its earthquake.