Worries over the US economy have been undermining the dollar

At one stage, it took $1.5393 to buy a euro. That is the weakest the dollar has traded at since the single European currency was launched in January 1999.

Falling US interest rates have made it less attractive to hold the dollar.

The ECB's decision to not cut rates meant investors continued to buy the European currency, boosting its value.

The Bank of England announced it was keeping UK rates on hold, too, which weakened the dollar against sterling.

The pound traded at over $2 for the first time this year.

The currency markets expect the Federal Reserve to cut US interest rates before central banks in the UK or Europe, which makes the dollar a less attractive investment.

Two gloomy reports on Wednesday raised expectations that the Fed will lower interest rates when it meets later this month.

The Commerce Department reported that new orders for manufactured goods fell 2.5% in January, the biggest decline in five months.

A separate report from the Institute for Supply Management showed that activity in the US service sector shrank in February for the second month in a row.