* New Greek program to rein in budget deficit buoys market
* Euro rises vs dollar, stocks gain on new Greek program
* US bond prices slip on slower private job losses data
* Oil rises above $80 a barrel before US inventory report
(Updates with U.S. markets, changes byline; dateline
previously LONDON)
By Herbert Lash
NEW YORK, March 3 (Reuters) - The euro rose against the
U.S. dollar and stocks edged higher on Wednesday after Greece
endorsed a sweeping new program of spending cuts and tax
increases it hopes will win help from the European Union.
Risk assets also were supported by a report of slower U.S.
private sector job losses in February and data that showed the
U.S. services sector grew last month at its fastest pace since
the deep U.S. recession began in December 2007. For details
see: [][]
Greece's cabinet approved the program, the third in as many
months, that targets civil servants, the rich and the church
and that is intended to rein in a bulging budget deficit.
[]
European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said
Greece's plan to save an extra 4.8 billion euros ($6.5
billion), equal to about 2 percent of Greek gross domestic
product, would be backed by European solidarity.
[]
But Germany was quick to temper Greek hopes and market
expectations for more concrete support, saying it would offer
no aid when Chancellor Angela Merkel and Greek Prime Minister
George Papandreou meet in Berlin on Friday.
Euro-dollar trading was volatile and markets remained wary
over whether the plan would be enough for Athens to win French
and German financial support.
"We believe today's developments go a long way towards
pacifying the markets which have become preoccupied with
fragmentation risk in the region," said Boris Schlossberg,
director of currency research at GFT in New York.
The euro last traded at $1.3637 <EUR=>, up 0.2 percent on
the day. The dollar was at 88.82 yen <JPY=>, up 0.1 percent on
the day.
SMSCI's all-country world stock index <.MIWD00000PUS>
gained 0.8 percent as U.S. and European edged higher.
The Dow Jones industrial average <> was up 42.55
points, or 0.41 percent, at 10,448.53. The Standard & Poor's
500 Index <.SPX> was up 4.52 points, or 0.40 percent, at
1,122.83. The Nasdaq Composite Index <> was up 7.10
points, or 0.31 percent, at 2,287.89.
The FTSEurofirst 300 <> index of leading European
shares was up 0.8 percent at 1,035.18 points.
Oil climbed above $80 a barrel as the dollar weakened,
though it lost some ground after a U.S. inventory report that
showed crude stocks rose more than forecast. []
U.S. light sweet crude oil <CLc1> rose 53 cents to $80.21 a
barrel.
Gold rose to 6-1/2 week highs at $1,141.70 an ounce as the
dollar extended losses and as broader fears over the outlook
for paper currrencies lent further support to the precious
metal. []
Both German Bund and Greek government bond prices rose
after news of the new Greek program. The spread of Greek yields
over the euro zone benchmark narrowed to 288 basis points
<GR10YT=RR> <EU10YT=RR> from 305 bps at the European settlement
close on Tuesday.
U.S. Treasury bonds eased for a second day after the U.S.
employment and service sector reports []. The
benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note <US10YT=RR> was down 10/32
in price to yield 3.6475 percent.
(Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
