LONDON (Reuters) - The dollar fell to a record low against the euro for a third consecutive day on Thursday and hit multi-year lows versus all other major currencies as broad dollar selling gathered momentum.

The most eye-catching decline was against the New Zealand dollar, where it touched its lowest point in 16 years.

Warnings from Japanese and European policymakers did little to halt the greenback's slide, which has been driven primarily by concerns over the U.S. current account deficit and the market's belief that Washington is happy to see a weaker dollar.

"The market is on the move," said Hans-Guenter Redeker, chief foreign exchange strategist at BNP Paribas in London. "We have again broken significant levels, including $1.32. And if we are able to close above that, we will see more acceleration to $1.3350."

"What we have to think about is what can stop this and when."

The dollar fell to a record low of $1.3237 per euro by 7:55 a.m. EST. Against the yen, the dollar fell as low as 102.41 before recovering a touch to 102.60 yen.

It notched up new nine-year lows against the Swiss franc and a basket of currencies.

Weaker-than-expected data from Europe's largest economy had little effect on the euro. The Ifo research institute's pan-German business climate index fell to 94.1 in November, its lowest since September 2003 and below forecasts.

"Data from the eurozone is largely being ignored. Everyone is running with the trend," said Kristjan Kasikov, currency strategist at Calyon.

Trading was thin with U.S. markets closed for the Thanksgiving holiday.

Several investment banks cut their dollar forecasts, with JP Morgan targeting the dollar at 100 yen and the euro at $1.35 by the end of this year.
And analysts said markets were now likely to push the dollar as low as they could to see at what point central banks, in particular the European Central Bank, would lose their poise and intervene to halt the slide.

U.S. policymakers have so far appeared happy with a weaker dollar and the currency's decline accelerated last week after Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan said U.S. deficits were unsustainable and appetite for U.S. assets was bound to dwindle.

"The ECB has to be quite blunt," said Redeker. "Otherwise the markets will force it to see where its threshold is."

The ECB will get a chance to comment if it wants later in the session when chief economist Otmar Issing makes a speech. The Bank of England's chief economist Charlie Bean is also due speak.

The head of the German Ifo economic institute said he believed intervention in currency markets was "appropriate" to rein in the dollar's fall.

In Japan, officials worried a rising yen would hurt a recovery in the export-oriented economy also stepped up their rhetoric.

Bank of Japan Governor Toshihiko Fukui said that recent movements in the foreign exchange market were not stable.

Earlier BOJ Policy Board member Hidehiko Haru said he would pay attention to any negative impact the recent rise in the yen had on the economy.

Japan's top government spokesman Hiroyuki Hosoda said the yen's recent surge did not reflect fundamentals and that authorities would act against rapid currency moves.

"The overriding sentiment on the dollar is very, very negative and it's a question of playing chicken with the BOJ as to whether they intervene or not," said Tony Norfield, head of foreign exchange research at ABN AMRO in London.

Japan has not intervened in currency markets since March, after a record 20 trillion yen ($194.4 billion) of dollar-supporting intervention in 2003.

IS CHINA READY?
Also pressuring the dollar against the yen was speculation that China may decide to revalue the yuan in the next few days.

The talk mounted on Thursday with the premium on the yuan in the offshore market surging to its highest in more than a year with some analysts saying Beijing could reach a decision at an annual high-level economic meeting this weekend.

It is widely believed that freeing the Chinese yuan from its peg of around 8.28 per dollar will result in an appreciation of the currency and lift other Asian currencies with it.

China has come under heavy pressure from the United States to allow the yuan to appreciate, as some U.S. manufacturers say an artificially cheap yuan hurts jobs and exports.