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The dollar sank to a new low against the euro on Friday but recovered some ground against the British pound even as Wall Street ended a turbulent week down sharply. The euro rose to a record high of $1.4752 in European trading before falling back to $1.4673 in the late afternoon, above the $1.4667 it bought Thursday. Its previous trading high was $1.4730 on Wednesday. The dollar is down nearly 12 percent against the euro since the start of the year. The dollar gained on the euro after the European Union, blaming oil prices and market turmoil, cut its economic forecasts for the next two years, with growth now expected to slow to 2.4 percent in 2008 and 2009. Britain's pound went as high as $2.1161 before falling to $2.0909, below the $2.1087 it bought Thursday. The dollar weakened against many of the European currencies and the yen on Thursday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said economic growth would slow noticeably in the United States in the coming months while rising oil costs would increase inflation pressures. The dollar also has been suffering from speculation that the Fed, which has cut its benchmark rate twice, may keep doing so even as its European counterparts hold their rates steady or raise them. Source : Yahoo Financial
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