Investing.com - The euro moved higher against the U.S. dollar in early trade Friday, lifted by assurances from European finance officials that the G-20 would work together to tackle the region’s ongoing debt threats.
EUR/USD hit 1.3567 in early U.S. trade, the pair’s lowest since Thursday; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.3538 rising 0.55%.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.3377, the low of January 19, and resistance at 1.3720, Monday’s high.
Late Thursday, finance ministers and central bank governors from the Group of 20 major economies vowed a coordinated effort to resolve Europe’s financial crisis.
In a statement issued from Washington where the International Monetary Fund was holdings its annual meeting, the G-20 said it would be working in the next few weeks to expand the powers of the USD595 billion rescue fund to support troubled banks.
Officials added the group’s aim was to “increase the flexibility” of the European Financial Stability Facility and “maximize its impact.”
G-20 officials had not planned on issuing a statement but decided to make a public announcement following recent sharp downturns on global equity markets and persistent fears of a contagion of euro-zone sovereign debt.
“We will ensure that banks are adequately capitalized and have sufficient access to funding to deal with current risks,” the statement said.
European shares were marginally higher in late Friday trade; France’s CAC was up 0.10% to 2,784.54, Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.11% to 5,047.40 and Germany’s DAX was higher by 0.13% to 5,170.83.
Wall Street reversed fortunes in early Friday trade, posting gains in the morning session; The Dow Jones Industrial Average edged up 0.33% to 10,769.44, the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 1.09% to 2,482.34, and the S&P 500 added 0.75% to 1,138.05.
Meanwhile, the euro was lower against the British pound but up against the Japanese yen, with EUR/GBP down by 0.36% to hit 0.8741, and EUR/JPY gaining 0.53% to hit 103.17.
The International Monetary Fund and World Bank annual meeting in Washington was scheduled to conclude later Friday.