FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — The dollar continued to strengthen against the euro yesterday as markets digested remarks made by US officials that offered support to the beleaguered American currency.

The euro bought $1.5509 in afternoon European trading, down from $1.5652 on Monday night in New York.

US President George W. Bush, who is currently touring Europe, said on Monday that "a strong dollar is in our nation's interests" and those of the global economy. Yesterday, however, Bush essentially rejected the idea of possible government intervention to prop up the dollar's value, saying that world economies would end up setting the currency's value.

Comments on Monday by US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and New York Federal Reserve president Tim Geithner also fed a rally by the dollar, which has been hovering near all-time lows against the euro amid worries over the US economy and an aggressive Fed interest rate-cutting campaign.

"I would never take intervention off the table or any policy tool off the table," Paulson said. "I just can't speculate about what we will or won't do."

Geithner said the central bank must pay attention to the dollar, and that tighter monetary policy may be necessary.

The rally continued despite a report from the US Commerce Department yesterday that the gap between what the US imports and what it sells abroad rose by 7.8 percent in April to $60.9 billion, the largest imbalance since March 2007, driven by an increase in crude oil imports.