The United States dollar dropped to the lowest level in almost a month against the euro after US reports showed inflation eased and consumption increased less than economists forecast.

The US dollar posted a third straight weekly loss as the data fueled speculation the US Federal Reserve will keep borrowing costs unchanged this year while other central banks extend increases, Bloomberg News reported on Friday. The dollar may extend the decline this week on statistics forecast to show US job growth slowed in June while a gauge of the service sector declined.

"The dollar will lose ground further," said Matthew Kassel, director of proprietary trading at ING Financial Markets LLC in New York. "The Fed is on hold. The interest-rate outlook moves against the dollar. The European Central Bank is still in tightening mode."

The dollar fell 0.5 percent this week to US$1.3541 per euro. It reached US$1.3542 on Friday, the lowest since June 5. The US currency touched an all-time low of US$1.3681 on April 27. It also declined 0.6 percent to 123.17 yen over the same period, 0.5 percent to US$2.0087 per pound and 0.6 percent to 1.2215 versus the Swiss franc.

For the quarter, the US currency dropped 1.4 percent against the euro, 7.5 percent versus the New Zealand dollar and 4.8 percent against the Australian dollar.

Japan's yen lost against all Group of 10 currencies this quarter as the country's lowest interest rates among industrialized nations spurred investors to borrow it to finance higher-yielding investments elsewhere, a practice known as carry trades.

Employers in the US probably added 125,000 jobs last month, down from 157,000 in May.