Euro ticks higher vs dollar as Ireland hopes rise

11/19/10 15:42 EST NEW YORK -The dollar dipped against the euro Friday as officials from Ireland, the European Union and the International Monetary Fund negotiated a financial aid deal for the country.

Ireland appears likely to receive a loan to bolster its troubled banks, which would ease fears that Ireland's troubles would lead to a broader loss of confidence in European nations and raise borrowing costs for other weak economies like Portugal and Spain.

Uncertainty over whether creditors would suffer heavy losses on their Irish investments have weighed on the euro for two weeks, dragging it down from a nine-month high of $1.4281 reached on Nov. 4. The prospect of a rescue for Ireland has helped the European currency regain some ground in the past several days.

In late trading in New York, the euro edged up to $1.3672 from $1.3635.

The euro remains significantly higher than a 4-year low below $1.19 it touched in early June, when Greece's debt problems had driven down the euro. A euro110 billion rescue for Greece helped ease its short-term funding problems.

Worries about slower growth in the U.S. and the Federal Reserve's plan to support the economy through lower interest rates helped tug the euro higher throughout summer and early fall despite lingering concerns about debt in Portugal, Spain and Ireland.

Elsewhere, the dollar traded mixed. The British pound fell to $1.5973 from $1.6044, while the dollar was almost unchanged at 83.49 Japanese yen from 83.45 yen late Thursday

The U.S. currency fell to 1.0183 Canadian dollars from 1.0214 Canadian dollars, and dipped to 0.9952 Swiss francs from 0.9965 Swiss francs.

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