FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) -- The euro edged lower versus the U.S. dollar Wednesday after the European Central Bank allotted 529.5 billion euros ($713.4 billion) in cheap loans to euro-zone banks in its second and potentially last three-year long-term refinancing operation, or LTRO. The euro EURUSD -0.09% changed hands at $1.3440 versus the dollar, down from $1.3473 in North American trade late Tuesday. The shared currency traded near $1.3460 ahead of the LTRO announcement and had traded above $1.3480 in earlier activity in Asia. The total LTRO allotment was slightly larger than expected. Surveys showed economists expected a figure near the 489 billion euros borrowed by banks at the first three-year operation in December.
