- Analysts see loss of confidence in US assets over trade policies
- Swiss franc leaps to decade-high, euro at three-year peak
- Yen hits multi-month high after selloff in US shares, Treasuries
- Yuan strengthens despite escalating US trade war with China
London, April 11 (Reuters) - The dollar continued to tumble on Friday, hitting its lowest in a decade against the Swiss franc and sending the euro above $1.14, as the fallout from U.S. tariffs continued to undermine the dollar's status as a safe haven in times of stress.
The losses followed the latest retaliation to U.S. tariffs from Beijing, which said it would impose 125% duties on U.S. goods from Saturday, up from the 84% previously announced.
That added to a global selloff which has battered stocks and even once safe-haven U.S. Treasuries - 10-year yields are on course for their biggest weekly jump since 2001.
Safe havens were among the stand outs, with the dollar dipping to 0.81150 Swiss francs in early European trading, its lowest since January 2015, extending Thursday's nearly 4% plunge.
The Swiss National Bank said it had no comment on the franc's strengthening.
"The SNB is in a delicate situation, they probably would like to intervene more but it's very hard right now. I can't see them doing this on a larger scale," said Michael Pfister, FX analyst at Commerzbank.
He said the SNB wouldn't like the franc's appreciation because of its deflationary effect.
The dollar also tumbled 1.4% against the Japanese yen to 142.37 .
The euro surged as well, up 2.02% to $1.1427, its highest in three years, with traders saying it was benefiting from high liquidity levels as investors look to sell dollars.
The euro also rose 1% against the pound in a sign of its outperformance, though the pound itself was up 1% against the dollar at $1.310.
"I'm deeply concerned about a lack of confidence among investors in the U.S. now," said Nomura strategist Naka Matsuzawa. "It's a no confidence vote from not just the equity market but also Treasury market participants in the Trump administration and its policies."
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Wednesday that a pullback in tariffs for most U.S. trading partners had been the plan all along to bring countries to the bargaining table. Trump, though, later indicated that the near-panic in markets since his April 2 tariff announcements had factored into his thinking.
The dollar index , which measures the greenback against six main peers, sagged as much as 1.2%, taking it temporarily below the 100 level for the first time since July 2023.
China's yuan was also in focus after dropping to its weakest ever both onshore and offshore this week, though it has since rebounded. The dollar was last flat against the offshore yuan at 7.3155.
The People's Bank of China on Friday lifted its official yuan midpoint guidance fix for the first time in seven days, reflecting the broad weakness in the dollar.
China watchers have interpreted the central bank's actions as a signal it is open to gradual yuan weakening, but not a sharp move lower.
Reporting by Lucy Raitano in London and Kevin Buckland in Tokyo. Editing by Gerry Doyle and MarkPotter
Source: Reuters