* Euro touches 2-month high versus dollar
* ECB holds rates, sees uneven growth going forward
* U.S. initial jobless benefits claims fell in latest week
* Aussie jumps vs yen, dlr after jobs data beats forecasts
(Updates prices, adds details, changes byline)
By Nick Olivari
NEW YORK, July 8 (Reuters) - The euro touched a two-month
high against the dollar on Thursday as U.S. and Australian
economic data restored faith in the global economic recovery
and boosted appetite for higher-yielding currencies.
New claims for U.S. unemployment insurance fell more than
expected last week and several top U.S. retail chains reported
stronger June same-store sales, supporting demand for stocks
and other higher-risk assets. [].
A jump in Australian employment in June drove the
Australian dollar up more than 1 percent on the day against the
dollar and nearly 2 percent higher against the yen.
[]
Clarity on European bank stress tests helped financial
stocks as investors saw criteria for the checks were no more
onerous than markets expected. [].
"The euro continued to be supported by the overall elevated
level of risk appetite," said Omer Esiner, a chief market
analyst at Commonwealth Foreign Exchange in Washington. "That
got a little bit of a boost from this morning's positive
initial jobless claims data."
The Australian dollar and other so-called commodity
currencies, such as the Canadian dollar as well as the euro,
are often seen as a gauge for investors' demand for riskier
assets.
The euro <EUR=> climbed to as high as $1.2700, its highest
since mid-May, according to Reuters data. It was last up 0.3
percent at $1.2672.
The European Central Bank earlier kept interest rates at a
record low 1.0 percent at its monthly meeting.
ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet said at a press
conference the economic recovery in the euro area continued in
the first half of 2010. Looking ahead, he expected the euro
area economy to grow "at a moderate and still uneven pace in an
environment of high uncertainty."
Trichet offered few details on whether the upcoming stress
tests will effectively gauge the health of European banks. The
president reiterated his calls for full transparency of the
results and said complete disclosure would boost confidence
among investors. Details on the test will be disclosed later
this month. []
Further declines in the U.S. dollar are likely, according
to the International Monetary Fund. The greenback will
depreciate in value "moderately" over the next five years, the
Fund predicted on Thursday. []
The Australian dollar was 1.7 percent higher versus the yen
at 77.12 yen <AUDJPY=R>, on the back of data showing Australia
created 45,900 jobs in June, much higher than forecasts for
17,500. It rose around 1 percent on the day against the dollar
to $0.8728 <AUD=>.
The yen was one of the day's biggest losers as gains in
European and U.S. stocks prompted investors to shed long
positions in the low-yielding currency.
The dollar rose 0.8 percent to 88.40 yen <JPY=>, while the
euro rose 1.1 percent against the Japanese currency to 112.00
<EURJPY=>.
Sterling <GBP=> slipped 0.4 percent to $1.5127, pulling
away from a two-month high of $1.5241 after an early rally
triggered an unwinding of some long positions.
It barely moved after the Bank of England kept interest
rates unchanged at a record low 0.5 percent, as widely
expected.
(Reporting by Nick Olivari and Vivianne Rodrigues; Editing by
Andrea Ricci)
