US$ Reaches 15-Month High Versus Euro

The U.S. dollar continued its bullish momentum overnight, gaining against the majority of its counterparts, even as European equities rebounded and U.S. stock futures show American shares will open modestly higher.  The greenback pushed to 15-month highs against the Euro amid concern the European Central Bank will inject more cash into the financial system to avoid a credit crunch.  The ECB said yesterday its balance sheet climbed to a record after it increased lending to banks in the region last week.  The common currency came under increased pressure after Italy sold only 7.02 billion euros of debt at a bond auction, less than its original target of 8.5 billion euros.  In addition, an index of Italian business confidence fell to its lowest level in two years in December.  Meanwhile, data released this morning showed that fewer Americans filed applications for unemployment benefits over the past month than at any time in the past three years.  Later this morning, the docket is expected to show that pending home sales rose 1.5% in November from the previous month, according to economists surveyed by Bloomberg.