* Euro subdued on Greek uncertainty; Dubai woes also weigh
* Short euro positions at record high
* Investors await Ecofin meeting for more comments on Greece
(Adds quotes, updates prices, changes byline)
By Jessica Mortimer
LONDON, Feb 15 (Reuters) - The euro steadied against the
dollar on Monday but stayed close to nine-month lows as
investors waited to see whether meetings of European finance
ministers would result in further support for Greece.
Worries over the indebtedness of Greece combined with
renewed concerns over Dubai's debt to fan aversion to risk,
keeping the U.S. dollar supported and weighing on the euro as
the market sought perceived safer assets.
There were few expectations the meetings on Monday and
Tuesday would yield specific measures to bail out Greece after
European Union leaders pledged last week to support it. Most
analysts expect uncertainty to keep the euro weak.
[]
"The market is already positioned for more falls in
euro/dollar, it just needs the impetus to continue that," said
Niels Christensen, currency strategist at Nordea in Copenhagen.
The latest data showed currency speculators raised bets on
the euro falling against the dollar to a record high in the week
to Feb. 9, while bets on the dollar rising hit their highest
since September 2008. []
By 1218 GMT, the euro edged up 0.1 percent to $1.3622
<EUR=>, after falling to the day's low of $1.3578, according to
electronic trading platform EBS. It hovered close to a 9-month
low of $1.3532 on Friday.
Against a basket of currencies, the dollar <.DXY> dipped 0.1
percent to 80.252 <.DXY>. However, it stayed not far from the
80.748 level hit late last week, its highest since July 2009.
For a graphic on the Commodity Futures Trading Commission
data see
http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/0210/EZ_ERCFTC0210.gif
"Sentiment very much favours a weak and vulnerable euro
across the board, while the Dubai situation is weighing on risk
appetite and keeping positive dollar sentiment intact," Nordea's
Christiansen said.
Activity was slow with many Asian markets closed for the
Lunar New Year holiday and U.S. markets also shut for a holiday.
The euro was vulnerable to a test of $1.3483, a 61.8 percent
retracement of the rally from below $1.25 in early March to the
$1.5144 high in November, traders said.
Concerns about debt restructuring at government-backed Dubai
World weighed on investors' appetite for risk. The cost of
insuring five-year Dubai government debt against default rose to
651 basis points, its highest since March last year.
[]
GREECE DETAILS EYED
Despite the market's extreme positioning against the euro,
most analysts do not see a correction until there is further
clarification on the Greece situation.
"It was a case of 'flee the euro' and retreat into almost
any other G10 currency," UBS analysts said of the CFTC data.
Jitters about large deficits in Greece and other smaller
euro zone countries have contributed to the euro's near 10
percent decline since late 2009.
"The near-term focus for Ecofin is to ensure that there is a
credible political and institutional EU framework in place to
help Greece deliver on its fiscal reform commitments and stem
further speculative pressures on euro zone governments and the
euro," said Lena Komileva, head of G7 market economics at
Tullett Prebon.
The dollar dipped 0.1 percent against the yen <JPY=> to
89.97 yen while the euro was steady at 122.57 yen <EURJPY=R>
after data on Monday showed Japan's economy grew a bigger-than-
expected 1.1 percent in October-December. []
(Additional reporting by Tamawa Desai in London)
