Euro rallies versus dollar

Close to $1.20, the euro climbed to a two-and-a-half-year high against the dollar in thin trade yesterday, extending gains made at the end of last week, writes Sam Forgione

European Central Bank president Mario Draghi’s decision to hold back from talking down the euro at the central bankers’ meeting in Jackson Hole, on Friday, despite the currency’s double-digit gains this year, continued to weigh on the dollar and sent the euro to $1.1963 yesterday, its strongest against the greenback since January 2015.

The dollar also weakened after Tropical Storm Harvey paralysed Houston, the US’s fourth-biggest city, spurring worries about the storm’s potential impact on the American economy.