Euro falls below $1.30 for first time since January

LONDON. December 14. KAZINFORM The euro has fallen further against other major currencies as fears continue over the eurozone's future; BBC reported.

The euro fell below $1.30 for the first time since 12 January. Against the pound, one euro bought 83.85 pence, while the pound was worth 1.19 euros.

Last week, 26 of the 27 members of the European Union backed new fiscal rules, with only the UK abstaining.

But many fear that the budget pact will still not be enough to prevent more countries from seeking a bailout.

European stock markets were in negative territory on Wednesday. London's FTSE 100 and Frankfurt's Dax were both down about 1% by lunchtime, with the Paris Cac 40 index trading 1.76% lower.

In other developments, the costs of borrowing for eurozone countries continued to diverge. Italy's government paid an interest rate of 6.47% to borrow 3bn euros for five years at a bond auction, up from 6.3% last month.

At the same time, Germany - whose debt is viewed by markets as the safest place within the eurozone to invest - saw its borrowing costs fall further.

At an auction of 5bn euros' worth of two-year bonds, the yield was 0.29%, down from 0.39% last month.