On a day of little in the way of economic data in either the UK or the US, the dollar managed to eke out the smallest of gains against the pound. However, by the close it was still down 0.6% on its level of a week ago and 2.0% lower for the month.

Despite ECB Governing Council member, Nicholas Garganas saying that euro strength lessened the need for further rises in interest rates, the euro was stable against the pound.

However, Garganas??™ comments helped the dollar pull back from its recent two-year low against the single currency.

The day??™s strongest major was the Japanese yen, which was buoyed by Standard & Poor??™s upgrading of the country??™s long term sovereign debt from AA- to AA. The yen closed 0.3% higher on the day against the dollar, extending its rise over the past week to 1.1%.

Similarly, the yen climbed 0.4% against the euro, extending its recovery against the single currency over the past week to 0.9%.

The Swiss franc found itself tracking the euro rather than the yen on Monday, easing fractionally against the dollar.