* Dollar rebounds versus euro in choppy trading
* Euro/Swiss franc rises on talk of intervention (Recasts, updates prices, adds comment)
By Wanfeng Zhou
NEW YORK, June 18 (Reuters) - The U.S. dollar rose against the euro on Thursday as traders bought back the U.S. currency after the pair failed to break a key technical level.
Price action was choppy as traders said moves in the foreign exchange market lacked conviction and most were unsure how to trade the dollar.
"We've really been stuck this week in a range and I think the market is searching for direction," said Steven Butler, head of FX trading at Scotia Capital in Toronto. "It's been seesawing around, depending on what the flavor of the day is."
He added that the market had tried to take the euro through $1.40 and was a bit disappointed that the pair failed to break the level, leading to a reversal in prices.
In afternoon trading in New York, the euro was down 0.3 percent against the dollar at $1.3897 after rising as high as $1.4001, according to Reuters data.
The dollar rose 0.9 percent against the yen to 96.55.
Analysts said with no U.S. economic data due for release on Friday, many investors were starting to look ahead to a Federal Reserve policy meeting next week.
The euro remained higher versus the Swiss franc amid speculation the Bank for International Settlements was buying euros on behalf of the Swiss National Bank to defend the 1.50-franc level.
The single European currency was last at 1.5094 francs, up 0.2 percent on the day. (Editing by Jan Paschal)