April 14 (Bloomberg) -- The concern that Group of Seven officials expressed about swings in exchange rates wasn't enough to change currency traders' outlook for the U.S. dollar.

Bank of America Corp., Royal Bank of Scotland Plc, JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. maintained their dollar forecasts after the G-7's finance ministers changed the wording of their statement for the first time in four years to reflect the dollar's 8.5 percent decline against the euro and 10.8 percent drop versus the yen this year. The banks are among the world's 10 biggest traders.

``It's a fairly minor change to the wording and it hasn't affected our outlook for the dollar,'' said Adam Boyton, senior FX strategist at Deutsche Bank AG in New York, the biggest trader. ``If the G-7 wanted to influence the currency market, it should have gone about it in a more forceful way.''

The dollar fell to $1.5818 per euro at 2:27 p.m. in New York, from $1.5808 April 11. The currency earlier reached $1.56 per euro, the strongest level since April 3. The dollar traded at 100.99 yen, from 100.95.

``Since our last meeting, there have been at times sharp fluctuations in major currencies, and we are concerned about their possible implications for economic and financial stability,'' the G-7 said in a statement after its meeting in Washington. It was the biggest change to the group's stance on exchange rates since a meeting in Boca Raton, Florida, in February 2004, when it cautioned against ``excess volatility.''

`Not a New Commitment'

The G-7 added the language after the dollar's decline accelerated since the group met in February, slumping 8 percent to a record low against the euro and 6 percent versus the yen. Volatility on options for the dollar rose to 14.5 percent last month, the same as when the group last tried to prop up the U.S. currency, in 1995.

``The G-7's agreement is not a new commitment to lead the dollar higher against major currencies,'' said Robert Sinche, head of global currency strategy at Bank of America Corp. in New York, in a note to clients today.

Bank of America, the world's sixth-biggest trader according to Euromoney's survey, said the dollar may fall beyond $1.60.

``While raising the specter of intervention, the communiqué does not signal that coordinated action is imminent or that policy makers have overcome past differences on the desirability of intervention,'' Gabriel de Kock, senior currency strategist at JPMorgan, the ninth-biggest trader, said yesterday in a note to clients.

The G-7, which comprises the U.S., U.K., Canada, Japan, Germany, France and Italy, hasn't intervened to buy or sell currencies since purchasing euros in September 2000.

`Completely Contrary'

Since August, the U.S. Federal Reserve has lowered its benchmark lending rate 3 percentage points to 2.25 percent, aiming to forestall a recession. At the same time, the European Central Bank has kept its benchmark rate at a six-year high of 4 percent amid the fastest inflation in almost 16 years.

``Intervention would run completely contrary to primary signals that drive currencies -- especially relative interest rates,'' said David Simmonds, London-based head of currency research at the Royal Bank of Scotland Plc, in a note to clients today. The bank, which ranks fourth among currency traders, predicts the dollar will trade at $1.63 by the end of September.

The Dollar Index, which measures the currency against six of its main counterparts, has tumbled 6.5 percent this year amid concern that credit-market losses will push the U.S. economy into a recession. The index dropped 8.3 percent in each of the past two years.

`Some Clarification'

``We have moved to a more neutral stance on the dollar versus the major currencies,'' Goldman Sachs analysts Jens Nordvig, Peter Berezin, Sergiy Verstyuk and Swarnali Ahmed said in a note today. ``The change in the statement does provide some clarification that we are getting closer to a situation where dollar weakness becomes undesirable for the G7 and where coordinated intervention becomes a real possibility.''

Goldman, the eighth biggest trader, kept its forecasts unchanged.

For related news:
Stories on Group of Seven meeting: {STNI G7MEET}
Stories on dollar weakness: {STNI DOLLARLOW}

To contact the reporters on this story: Bo Nielsen in New York at bnielsen4@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: April 14, 2008 14:54 EDT