Record for SUS

Press, 14 December 1983, Page 40

Record for SUS

NZPA-AP New York The American dollar hit record peaks against the French franc, Italian lira, and British pound in European trading on Monday, and later climbed as well on the United States currency market.

Gold prices rose modestly, closing in New York at $390 an ounce. A Federal Reserve Board (Fed) measure of the dollar’s value also hit a record high of 133.34. The United States Central Bank’s measure, weighted oh the basis of trade with 10 countries, hit its previous peak of 133.0 on Friday.

The West German Central Bank sold about SUSI4O million on Monday in a bid to curb the dollar’s rise against the mark, according to banking sources in Frankfurt.

The sources said they saw no evidence of major dollar sales by other European central banks or the Fed, however.

Traders reported a growing conviction that United States interest ■ rates would remain high relative to inflation, boosting the attractiveness of dollar-denomi-nated investments.

Th dollar also is drawing support from companies that must build up their

dollar positions before year’s end, said Mr J. J. McNulty, head for foreign exchange at Harris Trust and Savings Bank, Chicago. Many companies held off on buying dollars earlier this year on the belief its value would be lower late in the year. But with the dollar continuing to climb, “the ones that held off now have to buy dollars in what is a much thinner market,” which in turn is lifting the dollar even higher, Mr McNulty said. In New York, gold for spot delivery on the commodity exchange gained $2 to $390.40 an ounce.