Dollar Falls to 13-Year Low Versus Yen as U.S. Auto Bill Stalls

Dec. 12 (Bloomberg) -- The dollar fell to a 13-year low against the yen and declined against the euro after U.S. Senate Leader Harry Reid said lawmakers were unable to reach agreement on a $14 billion bailout plan for the nation’s automakers.

The dollar headed for its biggest weekly loss in eight years against the euro and a sixth weekly decline versus the yen, on speculation General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC won’t have enough cash to survive into the new year.

“There are no incentives to buy the dollar right now,” said Hideki Amikura, deputy general manager of foreign exchange at Nomura Trust and Banking Co. in Tokyo, a unit of Japan’s largest brokerage. “U.S. politicians can’t even agree on stopgap measures for the auto industry.”

The U.S. currency weakened to 90.67 yen, the lowest since Aug. 4, 1995, before trading at 90.69 yen as of 12:49 p.m. in Tokyo from 91.45 yen late yesterday in New York. It declined to $1.3389 per euro from $1.3352 yesterday.

GM and Chrysler LLC are racing against the clock as they need federal aid to keep from running out of cash early next year. Pressure is mounting on GM as a small number of parts makers ask for payments in advance, people familiar with the matter said.