Euro Defies Economic Data to Gain on Dollar
NEW YORK -- The euro bucked recent trends by gaining against the dollar even as weak euro-zone data and solid U.S. economic data pressured the common currency.</br></br>Traders generally shied away from dollar buying as U.S. stocks continued to sink on more profit warnings and little hope of immediate relief from monetary easing. Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan's testimony Wednesday quelled talk of an intermeeting interest-rate cut, but still left a fog of uncertainty over the U.S. economic landscape.</br></br>The dollar was little changed against the yen as yen-negative implications of the Bank of Japan's surprise rate cut Wednesday and a 201.88-point drop in the Nikkei 225-stock Index yesterday squared off with yen-supportive continuing repatriation flows.</br></br>"Traders are building [euro] positions because they don't want to miss any abrupt move upwards," said Michael Donahue, senior vice president of foreign exchange at Fimat USA in New York.</br></br>There is "continued concern by overseas holders of U.S. equities," Mr. Donahue said, adding that if stocks couldn't find support soon, the euro could build momentum toward parity with the dollar.