FX round-up: Euro gains on Greece hopes

Date: Wednesday 03 Mar 2010

Risk appetite was back on the table on Tuesday, sending the dollar lower and the euro higher.

The euro zone currency moved higher in anticipation that the Greek government will announce big budget cuts and other measure to help restore its financial stability. The euro was up 0.5% at $1.3608.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six other major currencies, fell to 80.437 on Wednesday from 80.753 the previous session.

The greenback fell 0.5% to 88.77 yen as the unemployment rate in Japan unexpectedly dropped to a 10-month low last month. The Australian dollar was up 0.4% against the US dollar as the Australian central bank hiked interest rates again to 4%, citing better than expected economic data.

The Canadian dollar also firmed as the Bank of Canada implied higher interest rates could be on the cards soon.

Sterling managed to dust off some losses but remained under pressure on Tuesday as unease continues about the upcoming elections.Fresh polls indicated the possibility of a hung parliament.

Sterling was down 0.5% at $1.4920.

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