The euro fell the most in a month versus the dollar as European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet said “downside risks” to the region’s economy have intensified, damping the outlook for interest-rate increases.

The 17-nation euro weakened against all of its major counterparts after the ECB kept its key interest rate at 1.5 percent and Trichet said inflation risks were no longer to the upside. 

The dollar strengthened before President Barack Obama unveils proposals to spur job growth and the U.S. economy. 

The pound rose for a second day against the dollar after the Bank of England maintained its quantitative-easing program at 200 billion pounds and kept its main interest rate at a record low 0.5 percent.

Obama will address a joint session of Congress today on proposals to speed job creation that may inject more than $300 billion into the economy next year. Almost half the stimulus may come from tax cuts, including an extension of a 2 percentage-point reduction in the payroll tax paid by workers due to expire Dec. 31 and a new decrease in the portion of the tax paid by employers.