NEW YORK, Sep. 25, 2009 (Xinhua News Agency) -- The dollar fell against the Japanese yen but rose against the sterling pound on Friday amid comments from top financial officials of Japan and Britain.
The Bank of England Governor Mervyn King told a U.K. newspaper on Thursday that the pound's fall "will be helpful" to rebalance the U.K. economy to one focused more on exports.
King also said U.K. growth may be beginning to pick up, but that people should not get too carried away as growth was very small. His comments were in line with the cautious stance of the British central bank in its recent policy meetings.
The BoE is expected to keep ultra-loose monetary policy for a while, undermining the pound. The sterling fell to a three-month low against the dollar in Friday New York trading.
Japan's Finance Minister Horihisa Fujii reiterated opposition to intervention in currency markets. Fujii told U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy that Japan would stay away from an "intentional" currency policy that would lead to a weaker yen.
Timothy Geithner said the United States has a special responsibility to preserve the role of the dollar as the world's primary reserve currency. He said the Obama administration is committed to doing everything necessary to preserve the dollar's standing in global currency markets.
Leaders from the Group 20 (G20) countries agreed on Friday at the third G20 summit in Pittsburgh to maintain their measures to support economic activity until recovery is fully assured.
G20 leaders also agreed to develop a transparent and credible process for withdrawing their extraordinary fiscal, monetary and financial sector support when time is ripe for an exit strategy.
The euro bought 1.4665 dollars in late New York trading compared with 1.4654 dollars it bought late Thursday. The pound fell to 1.5938 dollars from 1.6063 dollars.
The dollar rose to 1.0922 Canadian dollars from 1.0903 Canadian dollars, and fell to 1.0299 Swiss francs from 1.0303 Swiss francs. It fell to 89.90 Japanese yen from 91.27 Japanese yen.
