The euro declined after reaching a two-month high versus the yen as Greek Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos accused some euro-area nations of wanting the Greece to leave the union. The 17-nation currency fell against the dollar after European policy makers delayed a decision on the nation’s bailout scheduled for today. The euro earlier advanced after China said it will help tackle Europe’s debt crisis. Venizelos leveled the accusation after a decision slated for tonight on aid totaling 130 billion euros ($170 billion) was postponed until Feb. 20 at the earliest. China will invest in Europe’s bailout funds and maintain its holdings of the region’s assets, central bank Governor Zhou Xiaochuan said today in Beijing. With the world’s largest foreign-exchange reserves of $3.18 trillion, the Asian nation has previously signaled it wants to diversify the holdings away from dollar-denominated assets.
The dollar remained lower against its higher-yielding counterparts as manufacturing in the New York region expanded in February at the fastest pace since June 2010.