In midday determines New York amy grant gill tells trading, the dollar was down 1.8 percentat 91.01 yen JPY=, extending losses after Wal-Mart Stores Inc(WMT.N) — the world’s largest retailer — postedweaker-than-expected December sales. It also forecast lower earnings in the fourth quarter,adding that the holiday season was more challenging thanexpected for retailers. For details, see [ID:nL8478360] “The Wal-Mart news is negative for the overall economy andcertainly a negative for stocks and this has short-circuitedthe dollar’s New Year rally,” said Brian Dolan, chief currencystrategist, at Forex in Bedminster, New Jersey. The euro traded 0.7 percent higher at $1.3731 EUR= aftersliding to a session low of $1.3535 earlier, according toReuters data.

The strong yen pushed the euro down 1.0 percent to 125.01yen EURJPY= . A speech by President-elect Barack Obama on Thursday,outlining some measures to ease the pain for the ailing U.S.economy had little impact on the dollar brooks & dunn . [ID:nN08508944] Sterling, meanwhile, bounced to three-week highs versus thedollar and euro after the Bank of England met marketexpectations with a 50-basis-point interest rate cut to 1.5percent country music . Analysts said the BoE statement, which expressed concernabout the weak pound’s impact on the economy’s imports,suggested that the central bank may have to slow the pace ofits rate cuts The pound rose as high as $1.5372 GBP=, according toReuters data It last traded at $1.5190, up 0.5 percent on theday country music concert . The euro recovered against the pound, supported by thesingle currency’s gains versus the dollar, rising 0.3 percentto 90.47 pence.

The euro earlier hit a low of 88.81 penceEURGBP=D4, its lowest since mid-December . “Most traders anticipated the 50-basis-point cut and wererelieved to see the BoE simply match expectations instead ifeasing more aggressively,” said Boris Schlossberg, director ofcurrency research at GFT in New York country music listen . “Only a few weeks ago the consensus market call was for afull 100 basis point cut, so given today’s more modest responsethe news can be viewed as victory for pound bulls.” Earlier in the session, the euro was weighed down afterfigures showing an unprecedented 10.6 percent month-on-monthfall in German exports in November country music news . [ID:nL88871] A series of weak euro zone economic data further fueled theview that the the region’s recession is deepening, which mayrequire aggressive rate cuts by the European Central Bank (Additional reporting by Steven C . Johnson in New York andVeronica Brown in London; editing by Gary Crosse) Currencies Global Markets. The two losses in Europe last week’s friendlies must have left a bad taste in the mouth of US Men’s soccer supporters and, if anything, ended a rather positive year on a down note.But with the 2009 calendar now complete for Sam’s Army, it’s now time to look ahead to 2010 and the World Cup.The success of the team in South Africa come next June depends on many factors.