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Euro Pauses Near Yearly High Versus Dollar; Portugal Vote Eyed The euro leveled off near a yearly high versus the dollar on Tuesday, as traders looked ahead to tomorrow's pivotal Portuguese vote on austerity measures. Portugal's opposition party has signaled they will resist the sweeping budget cuts. Market watchers say the measures are necessary to avoid a bailout from Portugal's Euro zone neighbors. Eurozone finance ministers on Monday reached on a common ground to set up the capital base of their permanent bailout fund at 700 billion euros ($990 billion), as part of its response to the region's sovereign debt crisis. The euro rose to a 4-month peak of $1.4247 versus the dollar, then pulled back to $1.42 before the opening bell on Wall Street. A move above $1.4285 would take the euro to its highest since January 2010. On the flip side, the euro has been under pressure versus the sterling all morning, dropping to a weekly low of GBP 0.8665. British consumer prices surged more than expected to a 28-month high last month, raising speculation that the Bank of England will soon join the European Central Bank in tightening monetary policy. Annual inflation rose to 4.4 percent in February on higher fuel and clothing costs, data from the Office for National Statistics showed Tuesday. The euro and yen pair remained virtually unchanged for a second day, as traders waited for more signs that Japan can avert a nuclear meltdown at its damaged reactors north of Tokyo. The euro fetched Y115, having touched a 5-month low of Y106.44 last week. The Group of Seven nations intervened to weaken the yen last week, after the currency hit a new record high against thedollar.