“The euro strengthened for the first time in three days against the dollar after Spain sold more than the maximum target at its first debt auction of the year, boosting demand for the region’s assets.
The 17-nation currency rose toward an 18-month high versus the yen as the European Central Bank refrained from cutting interest rates at a meeting today amid signs the debt crisis is easing. ECB President Mario Draghi will hold a news conference at 2:30 p.m. in Frankfurt to explain the decision. The yen fell for a second day against the dollar on bets Japanese policy makers will boost stimulus that tends to weaken the currency. Australia’s currency gained after Chinese imports increased.
“The euro has rallied with decent bond sales from Spain,” said Peter Frank, global head of foreign-exchange strategy in London at Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA. (BBVA) “There’s not really appetite for a rate cut yet. The market will be looking to the press conference. If Draghi is less dovish than in December we could see a bit more support for the euro.”
The euro gained 0.3 percent to $1.3108 at 12:47 p.m. London time after dropping 0.4 percent during the previous two days. The shared currency rose 0.7 percent to 115.65 yen after appreciating to 115.99 on Jan. 2, the strongest since July 2011. The yen fell 0.4 percent to 88.20 per dollar.
The Spanish Treasury in Madrid raised 5.82 billion euros from the sale of three bond issues, exceeding its upper target of 5 billion euros. The auctions included a new two-year note with so-called collective-action clauses limiting investors’ rights to oppose writedowns….”
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