The euro briefly fell back below parity against a robust dollar on Monday and was languishing at five-week lows; weighed down by concern that a three-day halt to European gas supplies later this month will exacerbate an energy crisis.
China’s yuan dropped to its lowest in nearly two years after the central bank cut key lending rates.
The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of peers, surged to a mid-July high as Federal Reserve officials reiterated an aggressive monetary tightening stance ahead of the Fed’s Jackson Hole symposium this week.
The euro and sterling bore the brunt of the selling pressure against the dollar after Russia announced a three-day halt to European gas supplies via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline at the end of this month.
The single currency was last down 0.4% at $1.0001 after briefly falling to its lowest level since mid-July of $0.99895 .