Euro up vs. dollar as borrowing rates fall in Italy, Spain and US data looks weaker

The euro rose against the dollar Thursday as borrowing rates fell for Italy and Spain, a sign that investor confidence in those two debt-hobbled countries is improving.

Traders also bought euros because of worries that the economic recovery in the United States is slowing. More Americans filed unemployment claims last week, and retail sales barely grew in the last month of the year.

Italy sold one-year bonds at a rate of 2.735 percent, less than half what it had to pay last month. And Spain raised double the amount of money it had hoped to at its bond auction.

For more: Euro up vs. dollar as borrowing rates fall in Italy, Spain and US data looks weaker - The Washington Post