Euro strengthens against dollar as Fed lowers economic forecast

The euro strengthened against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday as the U.S. Federal Reserve lowered its economic growth forecast.

In the Fed minutes released on Wednesday, officials projected economic growth in 2010 will reach 3.0 to 3.5 percent, lower than in April when the Fed presented a relatively stronger forecast, saying the economy can grow between 3.2 percent and 3.7 percent this year.

The euro rose to 1.2731 dollars in late New York trading from 1. 2702 dollars Tuesday, while the British pound jumped to 1.5253 dollars from 1.5156 dollars. The dollar also slipped to 88.28 Japanese yen from 88.57 yen.

The dollar fell to 1.0550 Swiss francs from 1.0562 francs, but edged up to 1.0352 Canadian dollars from 1.0324 Canadian dollars.

Source:Xinhua