This week was marked by risk aversion sentiment that hit markets hard and sent stocks, commodities and higher-yielding currencies tumbling down. The Japanese yen thrived in such an environment.

The Australian dollar pared its two-day decline as the leaders of the Group of Twenty nations pledged to resolve the problems of the global economy and prevent another worldwide financial crisis.

The decline of the Canadian dollar slowed today, but the currency still fell most in almost three year over this week, posting the biggest weekly drop since the global recession.

Another currency that benefited from the meeting of the Group of Twenty nations chiefs was the Great Britain pound. The sterling reached the record low versus the yen yesterday.

The euro rebounded from yesterday’s drop to the eight-month low after global stocks advanced as the leaders of the Group of Twenty nations meet in Washington.

The US dollar continued its upward movement today as yesterday’s statement of the Federal Reserve continues to force Forex traders to shun risk and to seek safety. The yen outperformed the dollar as a safe currency.

Yesterday’s monetary policy statement of the Federal Reserve had a very negative effect on the Canadian dollar. The growth-linked currency posted the biggest decline since May 2010 today, dropping below parity with the US dollar for the first time since January 2011.

The New Zealand dollar slumped today after the report showed that the nation’s economic growth almost stalled in the second quarter of this year.

The Australian dollar dropped below the parity level with its US counterpart as signs of slower manufacturing in China and falling stocks weakened demand for Australia’s currency.

The US dollar jumped after the Federal Reserve announced it’s going to increase purchases of longer-term securities. The resulting surge of demand for safer currencies was beneficial for the dollar.