The dollar rose against most of its major counterparts amid speculation turmoil in Egypt will worsen, boosting demand for the safety of U.S. assets. The greenback headed for a third weekly gain versus the euro after Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak defied calls for his immediate resignation, agreeing only to delegate powers until a September election. Australia’s currency slid below parity with the dollar after Reserve Bank Governor Glenn Stevens said policy makers judged it “sensible” to keep interest rates on hold. U.S. consumer confidence rose, data today was forecast to show. “We have a bit of risk aversion,” said Jens Nordvig, a managing director of currency research in New York at Nomura Holdings Inc. “The reason we’re seeing a decent-sized move like this is because the outlook in the U.S. is better.” The dollar appreciated 0.6 percent to $1.3523 per euro at 9:31 a.m. in New York, from $1.3603 yesterday, when it rallied 1 percent. The greenback has appreciated 0.5 percent this week against the common currency. The dollar advanced 0.3 percent to 83.48 yen. The euro declined 0.3 percent to 112.83 yen. Canada’s dollar rose against all of its 16 most-traded peers as the nation unexpectedly posted its first trade surplus in 10 months and the U.S. trade deficit widened 5.9 percent to $40.6 billion, in line with forecasts. The Canadian currency gained 0.7 percent to C$1.3447 per euro. Krona Falls Sweden’s krona slid to its February low against the dollar as equities declined, with the OMX Stockholm 30 Index dropping to its lowest level since Dec. 1. The krona depreciated as much as 1.3 percent to 6.5423 per dollar, its weakest level since Jan. 31, and headed for a weekly drop of 0.5 percent. Against the euro, Sweden’s currency slipped 0.1 percent to 8.8015. IntercontinentalExchange Inc.’s Dollar Index, which tracks the greenback against the currencies of six major U.S. trading partners, climbed as much as 0.6 percent to 78.697, the highest level since Jan. 21. The gauge has risen 0.8 percent this week in what would be its first five-day rally since Jan. 7. Mubarak and his family left Cairo and arrived at the resort town of Sharm El-Sheikh, Al Arabiya television and the Associated Press reported without citing sources. Mubarak said yesterday he intended to stay on as president until the elections, while handing day-to-day powers to Vice President Omar Suleiman. Protests in Egypt, inspired by the revolt that ousted Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali on Jan. 14, sparked concern that tension would spread in a region that holds more than 50 percent of the world’s known oil reserves. ‘Bit of a Roil’ “The surprising events in Egypt caused a little bit of a roil in the market,” said Steve Butler, director of foreign- exchange trading in Toronto at Bank of Nova Scotia’s Scotia Capital unit. “We’ve seen the market looking for a little bit of protection and with that, flocking to the U.S. dollar.” The Stoxx Europe 600 Index slipped 0.2 percent and the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index fell 0.3 percent. The dollar was poised for a 1.6 percent weekly gain versus the yen, its biggest since Jan. 7, before a U.S. report economists said will show consumer confidence improved. The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan’s preliminary index of consumer sentiment rose to 75, the highest level since June, from 74.2 in January, according to the median forecast of 68 economists in a Bloomberg News survey. The report is due at 9:55 a.m. New York time. Aussie Weakens Australia’s dollar moved below parity with its U.S. counterpart for the first time in almost two weeks, weakening for a third day, as Stevens said in parliamentary committee testimony that there was no urgency to boost borrowing costs in the first half of the year. That led traders to cut bets on the amount rates would be increased over the next 12 months. “Stevens is leaning toward the dovish side, and that saw the Aussie drop, with his comments taking a rate hike out of the immediate picture,” said Tim Waterer, a foreign-exchange dealer at CMC Markets in Sydney. Traders lowered their prediction for the amount of interest-rate increases by the Reserve Bank over the next 12 months to 35 basis points from 41 basis points yesterday, according to a Credit Suisse Group AG index based on swaps. Australia’s currency fell 0.6 percent to 99.82 U.S. cents, from $1.0044. It dropped as much as 0.8 percent to 99.61 cents, the lowest level since Jan. 31. South Korea’s won decreased for a third day after the central bank kept its benchmark rate at 2.75 percent, a result predicted by only 3 of 12 economists in a Bloomberg News survey. The others forecast an increase. The currency depreciated 1.1 percent to 1,128.47 per dollar, after sliding to 1,128.70, the weakest since Jan. 11. To contact the reporters on this story: Catarina Saraiva in New York at asaraiva5@bloomberg.net; Lucy Meakin in London at lmeakin1@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Dave Liedtka at dliedtka@bloomberg.net

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