The dollar posted the biggest weekly gain versus the euro in more than two months on optimism the worst of the financial crisis in the U.S. is over.

The Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against the currencies of six of its biggest trading partners, completed the largest weekly advance since November after Wells Fargo & Co.’s profit beat estimates, triggering the steepest one-day gain on record in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Banks Index. The euro dropped the most against the yen since January on concern the European Central Bank will cut its benchmark interest rate to below 1 percent to spur growth.
“Wells Fargo’s results augur well for U.S. banks’ earnings and point to an easing in the financial crisis,” said Masanobu Ishikawa, general manager of foreign exchange at Tokyo Forex & Ueda Harlow Ltd., Japan’s largest currency broker. “The dollar is likely to be bought.”
The dollar climbed 2.3 percent this week to $1.3143 per euro on April 10, the biggest gain since the five days through Jan. 23. It touched $1.3090 yesterday, the strongest level since March 18. The greenback strengthened 1.1 percent to $1.4672 per pound and advanced 0.6 percent to 1,333 South Korean won.
The yen appreciated 2.3 percent to 132.18 per euro, the biggest gain since the week to Jan. 23. It was little changed against the dollar at 100.24 yen from 100.31 on April 3.
-------------Dollar index
The Dollar Index, which the ICE uses to track the greenback against the euro, yen, pound, Canadian dollar, Swiss franc and Swedish krona, gained 1.9 percent this week to 85.786, the most since the five days through Nov. 21. The ICE was closed yesterday for Easter.
The U.S. currency advanced after Wells Fargo, the second- largest U.S. home lender, said on April 9 that first-quarter net income surged 50 percent because of “strong” revenue from Wachovia Corp., which it acquired last year.
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. will release its first-quarter results on April 14. The New York-based company is considering a multibillion dollar share sale to help repay a $10 billion government loan, the Wall Street Journal reported yesterday, citing people familiar with the matter.
U.S. Treasury yields this week climbed to near the highest since the Federal Reserve started buying debt as the economy showed signs of improving and the U.S. sold $59 billion in debt. The 10-year yield rose three basis points, or 0.03 percentage point, to 2.93 percent, according to Bloomberg data.
(Source: Bloomberg)