Euro down against US dollar

BERLIN — The 16-nation euro slipped against the U.S. dollar Monday as traders shrugged off unemployment figures from Washington and looked ahead to this week's ECB decision on interest rates.

The euro bought $1.3406 in midday European trading, down from $1.3646 on Friday. The British pound fell to 1.4970 from $1.5180 on Friday.

Washington reported Friday that the U.S. unemployment rate had jumped to 7.2 percent, the highest in 16 years. The U.S. lost 524,000 jobs in December, bringing the total job loss for last year to 2.6 million, the largest since World War II.

But the losses were in line with what traders had predicted, said James Hughes, a market analyst at CMC markets.

"Friday's non-farm payrolls, although disappointing, fell squarely in line with expectations, whilst the prospect of the ECB meeting later this week is also heaping downside pressure on the common currency," he said.

The ECB is widely expected to reduce interest rates when it meets on Thursday. Lower rates can help bolster an economy, but weaken a currency as traders transfer funds to investments with greater returns.

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