Euro Rebounds in Asia on Interest Rate Hike Speculation

By: Barbara Zigah Commodity linked currencies, including the common currency Euro and the Australian Dollar, rebounded in Asian trading today with the Euro rising against the U.S. Dollar to $1.4387, a gain of 0.4%. More than any other single factor, the Euro is continuing to gain support from interest rate hike speculation, and recent encouraging business activity data from France and Germany supports that likelihood. Another commodity linked currency, the Australian Dollar, also struck a new 29-year high against the U.S. Dollar, trading at $1.0599.

Analysts say market jitteriness is being soothed by upbeat earnings reports in the U.S. and Europe, and investor sentiment is leaning toward higher risk currencies as the market well absorbed earlier concerns over Greek debt and a U.S. debt downgrade.

One analyst noted that investors are favoring currencies which offer higher yields at the Dollar and Yen’s expense, and a recent rise in the Asian equity market highlights investors’ sentiment toward risk-taking. The U.S. Dollar rose against the Japanese Yen, gaining 0.4% to trade at 82.91 Yen. The Euro also gained against the Japanese currency, climbing nearly 0.8% to trade at 119.27 Yen, well off a 2-week low of 116.49 Yen struck on the EBS trading platform earlier in the week.

http://www.dailyforex.com/forex-news/2011/04/Euro-Rebounds-in-Asia-on-Interest-Rate-Hike-Speculation/7726