The euro (EUR), the currency of the European Union, weakened to 1.00257 per US dollar during trading on Friday, July 15, 2022.
This was the euro's lowest level against the US dollar in the last two decades.
On Monday, July 18, 2022, the euro slightly strengthened by 0.7% to 1.00963 per US dollar.
The energy crisis hitting Europe, coupled with growing recession fears on the continent, caused the euro to plummet against the US dollar.
Conversely, the US dollar strengthened due to the Federal Reserve's interest rate hikes aimed at curbing high inflation in the United States.
The US dollar strengthened not only against the euro but also against other major currencies. According to Yahoo Finance data, the US dollar index (DXY) against six major world currencies weakened by 11.2% to 107.37 on July 18, 2022, compared to its position on December 31, 2021 (year-to-date/ytd).
The Japanese yen (JPY) was hit hardest, weakening by 20.1% (ytd) against the US dollar until July 18, 2022.
The Swedish krona (SEK) weakened by 15.03% (ytd), the British pound (GBP) by 11.6% (ytd), and the euro (EUR) by 10.47% (ytd) until July 18, 2022.
The Swiss franc (CHF) depreciated by 6.55% (ytd), and the Canadian dollar (CAD) weakened by 1.79% (ytd) during the same period.
Amid global economic uncertainty, the US dollar is considered a safe haven for investors. The increase in US interest rates makes investment in the United States even more attractive.