January 5, 2002	Saturday	Shawwal 20, 1422

LONDON, Jan 4: The euro recoiled further below 90 US cents on Friday as any lingering afterglow from the launch of notes and coins died out, leaving the currency to rely on economic fundamentals for support.

The single European currency fell to 0.8949 dollars, having run up as high as 0.9063 dollars earlier this week.

The dollar meanwhile was slightly softer against the Japanese currency at 131.10 yen.

Sterling rebounded from heavy losses earlier this week as dealers decided that euro cash had in fact not brought Britain much nearer to joining the euro zone. The pound rose to 1.6111 euros from 1.6003 in New York overnight.—AFP