Investing.com - The euro was lower against the dollar for a sixth straight session on Monday, as the European Central Bank’s bond buying stimulus program continued to pressure the single currency lower.
EUR/USD was down 0.43% to 1.0555, the lowest level since March 16.
The single currency has fallen 13% against the dollar so far this year after the ECB unveiled a trillion-euro quantitative easing program in January. The bank started asset purchases last month, pushing euro area bond yields to new lows.
Sentiment on the single currency was also hit as uncertainty over Greece’s bailout continued to weigh. Talks between Athens and its lenders on proposed economic reforms were expected to resume later Monday, ahead of a meeting of euro area finance ministers on April 24.
Demand for the dollar was underpinned by expectations for higher interest rates, as investors regained confidence that the U.S. economy would continue to recover after recent economic reports pointed to a slowdown at the start of the year.
The greenback received a boost last week after comments by the presidents of the New York and Richmond Federal Reserve banks made the case for the Fed to begin policy tightening as early as the summer.
Some investors had pushed back the timing of a rate hike until late 2015 after a surprisingly weak U.S. employment report for March.
The dollar received an additional boost after data on Monday showing that Chinese exports unexpectedly dropped 15% in March heightened concerns over a slowdown in the world’s second largest economy.
The euro dipped against the yen, with EUR/JPY easing down to 127.27.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, rose to one-month highs of 100.17.