The Canadian currency, one of the most linked to stocks and commodities prices, had a weak performance today as stocks in Toronto and the crude oil fell, as concerns that the global slump will be prolonged are on the rise.

The pound entered its fourth day of losses against the dollar and the euro, after British financial sector calls Bank of England to expand its asset purchasing program to revive the faltering economy in the United Kingdom.

The euro, which until last week was rallying against currencies like the greenback and the yen, started this week losing versus virtually all majors, after speculations that European Union officials will reaffirm that the recession is far from being over.

The South African rand, which was the best performing currency in the first quarter among the 16 most traded currencies, thanks to a wave of risk appetite, fell for the third day in a row, as pessimism increases risk aversion, damping demand for high-yielding emergent markets currencies.

The Mexican currency and stocks went down this Monday after the confirmation that President Calderon’s party lost midterm elections, raising concerns that reforms needed to stimulate the Mexican economy will not be implemented.

Speculations that the Bank of England will take further measures to stimulate the national economy brought pessimism to British markets, setting the pound down against currencies like the euro, dollar and the yen.

The yen, the most attractive currency in times of uncertainty, started this week climbing against the dollar and the euro, as pessimistic reports last week led to speculations that the economic recovery will falter, raising risk aversion levels among traders.

The dollar ended this week posting gains versus all 6 major currencies, as another wave of pessimism caused by grim reports in U.S. and U.K. spurred demand for the safety of the greenback.

The Mexican peso, a currency which is highly dependent on United States economic conditions, had the first decline in three weeks as American unemployment figures increased concerns regarding the nation’s recession depth.

The Brazilian real, which started the week with a bearish movement due to rising concerns regarding the global slump depth, recovered its losses on favorable domestic economic reports.