The dollar rose to a fresh 11-month high against the yen in Asian trading Thursday on concerns that record crude oil prices could curb growth in Japan's resource-poor economy, AP reported. The dollar rose as high as 112.34 yen _ its highest since trading at 112.49 yen on July 29, 2004 _ before slipping slightly to 112.24 yen by late afternoon in Tokyo. That was up 0.60 yen from late Wednesday and above the 112.18 yen it later bought in New York. The euro fell to US$1.1922 from US$1.1942. Rising oil prices weighed on the yen, said Jun Kitazawa, vice president of foreign exchange at BBH Investment Services. Japan and other Asian nations, which are heavily dependent on imported crude, are seen as particularly vulnerable to swings in oil prices. Oil prices surged for the first time above US$61 a barrel overnight in New York and continued its climb in Asia. Early afternoon in Singapore, light, sweet crude for August delivery rose as high as US$61.63 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Late Thursday, the dollar was also up against most other regional currencies, rising to 1.6984 Singapore dollars from S$1.6970 and to 41.730 Thai baht from 41.605 baht. The Australian dollar dipped to US$0.7404 from US$0.7410.
