Investing.com - The euro held gains against the U.S. dollar on Tuesday, as investors awaited the outcome of a meeting between German Chancellor Angela Merkel and International Monetary Fund President Christine Lagarde to discuss Greece’s bailout.
EUR/USD hit 1.2818 during U.S. morning trade, the daily high; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.2796, rising 0.25%.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.2665, Monday’s low and a 16-month trough and resistance at 1.2891, the high of September 13, 2010.
On Monday, Merkel warned Greece that it would not be possible to give further financial aid without swift progress on its second rescue package, including a voluntary write-down on Greek debt held by private creditors.
The euro found support earlier after ratings agency Fitch said that France, the euro zone's second largest economy, would not be downgraded in 2012.
But Fitches’ warned that Italy still faced a significant chance for a rating’s downgrade, in the absence of significant measures to arrest the spread of the sovereign debt crisis in the euro zone.
The yield on 10-year Italian government bonds remained above the 7% threshold seen as unsustainable, at 7.17%, while the yield on Spanish 10-year bonds was at 5.57% ahead of government bond auctions by the two countries later in the week.
The euro was fractionally higher against the pound, with EUR/GBP inching up 0.03% to hit 0.8259.
Also Tuesday, official data showed that French industrial production rose 1.1% in November, defying expectations for no change.
EUR/USD hit 1.2818 during U.S. morning trade, the daily high; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.2796, rising 0.25%.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.2665, Monday’s low and a 16-month trough and resistance at 1.2891, the high of September 13, 2010.
On Monday, Merkel warned Greece that it would not be possible to give further financial aid without swift progress on its second rescue package, including a voluntary write-down on Greek debt held by private creditors.
The euro found support earlier after ratings agency Fitch said that France, the euro zone's second largest economy, would not be downgraded in 2012.
But Fitches’ warned that Italy still faced a significant chance for a rating’s downgrade, in the absence of significant measures to arrest the spread of the sovereign debt crisis in the euro zone.
The yield on 10-year Italian government bonds remained above the 7% threshold seen as unsustainable, at 7.17%, while the yield on Spanish 10-year bonds was at 5.57% ahead of government bond auctions by the two countries later in the week.
The euro was fractionally higher against the pound, with EUR/GBP inching up 0.03% to hit 0.8259.
Also Tuesday, official data showed that French industrial production rose 1.1% in November, defying expectations for no change.