The U.S. dollar was mixed against major regional currencies in late Asian trading Thursday, while it stayed just above an all-time low against the euro. The euro briefly surged to near an all-time high against the yen. The 12-nation European currency continued to retreat from its record-high of US$1.3646 that it hit on Wednesday in Europe after slipping in New York trading overnight. The euro traded at US$1.3616 late in Asia, down from US$1.3628 the day before. Worries about the ballooning U.S. trade and budget deficits have seen the dollar slide in recent months against major currencies. Indications that Japanese authorities were ready to intervene, however, have helped to stem the dollar's climb against the yen. Late on Thursday, the dollar was trading at 103.78 yen, up 0.56 yen from late Wednesday in Asia but below the 103.80 yen it bought in New York. Speculators in Asia temporarily drove the euro as high as 141.63 yen _ just shy of its all-time high of 141.64 yen reached in New York Wednesday. Traders said some investors who missed out on the rally overnight were testing the euro's upper limit against the Japanese currency. Their reluctance to push it further, however, allowed the euro to retreat to 141.42 yen by late trading. On Wednesday in Asia, the euro was at 140.68 yen. In other Asian currencies, the greenback was moderately lower against the Singapore dollar but higher against the South Korea won, compared to the previous day. In late trading, the dollar was at 1.6366 Singapore dollar, down from 1.6380 Singapore dollar. Against the won, the dollar rose to 1041.6, from 1041.5. It was down against the Hong Kong dollar, falling to 7.7766 Hong Kong dollars from 7.7780. The U.S. currency rose to 0.7744 Australian dollar, from 0.7740.
