January 31, 2008	Thursday	Muharram 21, 1429

LONDON, Jan 30: The dollar lost ground against the euro on Wednesday ahead of a key US Federal Reserve meeting which is expected to deliver another substantial interest rate cut, dealers said.

The single European currency in late day trade $1.4783, up from $1.4774 in late trade on Tuesday.

The dollar was meanwhile at 107.27 yen, up from 107.07 yen.

Financial markets have priced in expectations that the Fed will deliver a half-point reduction to take its key interest rate down to 3.00 per cent from its current 3.50 per cent. Weaker-than-expected US fourth quarter growth figures bolstered that view but there were some concerns.

“As is usual, ahead of the Fed meeting, some doubts have started to creep in about exactly what the Fed will deliver,” said Paul Mortimer-Lee, head of market economics at BNP Paribas.

The payroll services firm ADP reported that the US economy added a surprisingly large 130,000 private sector jobs in January, suggesting that the official non-farm payroll figure -- due Friday -- may exceed the 58,000 expected.—AFP