* Dollar edges up vs yen, euro as U.S. stocks fade
* Sterling under pressure vs dollar, euro
* June euro zone new orders beat forecasts
* Central bankers upbeat but economic data awaited
(Updates prices, adds comment, details)
By Steven C. Johnson
NEW YORK, Aug 24 (Reuters) - The dollar edged up against
the euro and yen on Monday in extremely thin trade as Wall
Street surrendered earlier gains and traders repositioned
themselves ahead of U.S. consumer and housing data due this
week.
Solid U.S. and euro zone data and an upbeat assessment on
the economy from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke over the
weekend earlier pushed investors to take on riskier investments
at the expense of the the low-yielding yen and dollar.
"Conventional wisdom suggests that major currencies should
trade within their recent ranges until liquidity improves after
the Labor Day holiday," said Wells Fargo currency strategist
Vassili Serebriakov. "However, there is plenty of data in the
U.S. and elsewhere to change that this week, with
consumer-related numbers likely to be watched closely."
Investors are looking ahead to upcoming U.S. and European
data to confirm hopes that the world economy is improving.
The dollar was last up 0.1 percent at 94.49 yen <JPY=>
while the euro slipped 0.1 percent to $1.4304 <EUR=>. Against
the yen, the euro was unchanged at 135.20 yen <EURJPY=>.
The euro trimmed losses against the greenback after data
showing much higher-than-expected euro zone industrial orders
in June. [].
Sterling fell 0.6 percent on the day at $1.6405 <GBP=>.
The euro <EURGBP=>, meanwhile, hit an 11-week high against
sterling at 87.27 pence, according to Reuters data.
Traders said the euro was pushed past a key options
barrier at 87 pence, setting up further gains in the pair,
while analysts said expectations for persistently low UK
interest rates were weighing on the British currency.
The Federal Reserve's Jackson Hole meeting over the weekend
offered a variety of opinions about the global economy, with
Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke acting as the cheerleader for growth.
See ANALYSIS [].
But traders are keen to see how the euro zone economy
fares, especially after higher-than-forecast purchasing
managers' index readings last week. Germany's Ifo survey of
business sentiment will be key this week, analysts said.
The U.S. Conference Board will release its August consumer
confidence index on Tuesday, followed by the Reuters/University
of Michigan consumer sentiment snapshot on Friday.
Nouriel Roubini, professor at New York University's Stern
School of Business and one of the few economists who accurately
predicted the magnitude of the current crisis, wrote in The
Financial Times on Monday that there's still a "big risk" of a
double-dip recession.
Allan Meltzer, a political economy professor at Carnegie
Mellon University, also told Reuters that the flood of money
the Fed and Treasury have injected into the banking sector and
economy since the crisis began will soon threaten the dollar.
"Will the Chinese continue to buy the trillions of dollars
worth of debt that the Treasury intends to put out every year?
We don't know, but if not, the pressure will be on the Fed to
keep buying it, and my guess is that's going to be inflationary
over the next couple of years, and the dollar will suffer," he
said.
(Editing by Leslie Adler)
