The euro remained weak against the dollar after another disappointing economic survey from Germany, the euro zone's largest economy. German business confidence slumped to the lowest level in 21 months in May, quashing hopes for a pick-up in economic activity in the euro zone's biggest economy in the foreseeable future. The widely watched business climate index, calculated each month by the Ifo economic research institute, fell to 92.9 points in May from 93.3 points in April and expectations of no change. Despite the grim economic picture in the 12-nation currency zone, analysts do not expect an imminent interest rate cut from the European Central Bank. "In our view, it would require very serious economic troubles to push the ECB into easing; certainly more trouble than is associated with the recent weakening of business confidence," said Holger Fahrinkrug, a UBS analyst. That view was apparent in two interviews given by ECB officials earlier today. ЕCB governing council member, Erkki Liikanen, told the Financial Times Deutschland that policy remained "very accommodative" and that at some point in the future, policy should move towards a "more neutral position." Meanwhile, his colleague on the bank's executive board, Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa, told the daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung that "as things look at the moment, it's clear that the only move we can imagine at the moment is a step towards more neutral interest rates." The ECB has held its key interest rates steady at 2.0 pct since June 2003. The euro has been pushed onto the backfoot in recent weeks by fears the French will vote against the EU constitution this weekend in a referendum aws well as concerns about the state of the euro zone economy. Investors have placed greater importance on developments related to interest rate differentials than structural concerns relating to the US's twin deficits. Attention will soon turn to US releases this afternoon, in particular durable goods orders for April to be followed by first quarter GDP numbers tomorrow. Overnight, the minutes of the US rate setting body's last meeting revealed concerns about rising price pressures and slowing economic growth. Elsewhere, the pound was steady even though UK economic growth fell to its lowest level in nearly two years as the market's main focus of attention remained on Sunday's EU constitution referendum on Sunday