* Euro gains vs dollar after release of Fed minutes
* Minutes indicate more quantitative easing on the agenda
* Trading volatile as ECB's Weber comments on euro zone
* Dollar hovers below 82 yen, near 15-year low (Adds details, updates prices)
NEW YORK, Oct 12 (Reuters) - The euro rallied against the dollar on Tuesday after minutes from the Federal Reserve's latest meeting showed members felt further monetary easing could be appropriate before long.
The Fed's comments were in sharp contrast to those about Europe that European Central Bank Governing Council member Axel Weber made earlier. He said the ECB's government bond-buying program has not worked and should be scrapped.
The euro swung wildly between gains and losses throughout the session but finally settled in positive territory after the Fed minutes indicated officials believed in September that further help for the struggling economy might be needed soon and discussed how best that might be done. For details, see [ID:nWALCLE6OH]
"The comments support and reinforce the view that there will be Fed policy action at the November meeting," said Nick Bennenbroek, head of FX strategy at Wells Fargo in New York. "This seems to be the consensus now and so we're seeing the euro gaining against the dollar."
Bennenbroek said the euro's gains were limited because further quantitative easing had already been priced into the market, but the overall weak trend in the dollar remains in place.
In mid-afternoon trading, the euro
Euro trading had been volatile, paring losses against the dollar after European Central Bank Governing Council member Axel Weber said the ECB's government bond-buying program has not worked and should be scrapped.
Speaking in New York, Weber called for the ECB to scale back its other forms of support as soon as possible and not delay interest rate hikes. [ID:nLDE69B266]
Weber's comments had already set the tone to differentiate the euro view with that of the dollar ahead of the release of minutes from the Federal Reserve's September policy meeting.
"The ECB is concerned about the stability of their currency and they are consequently planning to withdraw the minimal amount of QE they have supplied," said Joseph Trevisani, chief market analyst at FX Solutions in Saddle River, New Jersey before the Fed minutes. "The Fed is not concerned and seems to be planning to double its QE with the result the euro is up. The dollar is down."
A Reuters poll of U.S. primary dealers conducted last week forecast a new round of quantitative easing would range between $500 billion and $1.5 trillion [FED/R], with market players also keen to assess whether the Fed will adopt a "drip-feed" or "shock-and-awe" approach.
Most think the Fed will announce its second round of easing after its next meeting on Nov. 3.
The dollar fell 0.4 percent to 81.74 yen, not far from a
15-year low of 81.37 struck on Monday on electronic trading
platform EBS
Most market players expect pressure to remain on the dollar/yen pair, with a test of 80 yen and the record trough of 79.75 yen still in sight.
Analysts said the risk of another round of intervention to weaken the yen seemed to have increased after Japan weathered the flurry of weekend G7 and IMF meetings with hardly any criticism of its recent yen sales.