Dollar drops in Asia amid concerns about U.S. economy

The dollar plunged in Asia Thursday amid growing worries about the American economy.

Photo: Dollar drops in Asia amid concerns about U.S. economy

The dollar was trading at 117.92 yen midafternoon, down from 118.61 yen late Wednesday in New York. The euro rose to US$1.3593 from US$1.3580.

Overseas fund players sold the dollar to lock in profits, as selling by Japanese exporters also added to its fall, traders said.

The dollar was likely to continue falling because of growing concerns about a U.S. economic slowdown, they said.

The euro, meanwhile, fell against the yen to 160.05 yen, as short-term investors began to sell the euro to lock in profits, after seeing that the euro had failed to rise above 163 yen during the week, they said.

"It appears that the euro/yen market has entered a correction phase," said Tokyo Forex and Ueda Harlow senior manager Masanobu Ishikawa.

The dollar was mostly higher against other regional currencies, slipping to 33.140 Taiwan dollar from 33.163 the previous day, while gaining to 9,102 Indonesian rupiah from 9,091, and to 928.8 South Korean won from 928.4.