* Dollar falls after Fed's Bernanke says nothing new
* Risk appetite boosted by earnings, Singapore reval
* Canadian dollar climbs to 22-mth high vs U.S. dollar
(Recasts, updates prices, adds comment)
NEW YORK, April 14 (Reuters) - The dollar surrendered
gains against the yen and fell against the euro on Wednesday
over disappointment U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke
gave no new guidance on U.S. interest rates.
Bernanke on Wednesday in congressional testimony made no
direct reference to the near-term outlook for benchmark
interest rates or the Fed's vow to keep them really low for an
"extended period." Instead, Bernanke focused mostly on barriers
to further growth. []
Higher rates would bolster the attractiveness of U.S.
assets and stoke demand for the dollars to buy them.
"Everyone was looking for him to signal a rise in the
discount rate," said Kathy Lien, director of FX research at GFT
in New York. "But he did not telegraph that."
Speculation China will allow its currency to appreciate
also prompted the dollar to fall, particularly against the yen
Bernanke said in testimony most economists agree China's
currency is undervalued and it would be in China's interests to
seek a more flexible exchange rate to boost domestic demand.
He added however, that the exchange rate by itself is
unlikely to have a big impact on China's trade balance and U.S.
jobs. [].
"The strong likelihood of a Chinese yuan revaluation
prompted bailout of dollar positions," said Lien.
The dollar was down 0.2 percent at 93.03 yen <JPY=>, off
the session low of 92.83 yen.
Against the yen, the euro <EURJPY=> rose 0.2 percent to
127.12 yen, trading above its 100-day moving average around
127.00 yen. Resistance was seen at a previous high of 128.00
yen.
The euro <EUR=> was up 0.4 percent at $1.3664, below an
earlier session high of $1.3678.
The euro was already bouyed after Singapore effectively
revalued its currency and as upbeat U.S. corporate earnings
boosted appetite for risk.
The Singapore move was viewed as a mark of confidence in
the economic recovery, helping growth-sensitive currencies like
the Canadian dollar, which hit its highest in almost two years
against the U.S. currency. For more see [].
In a volatile session, the euro pared gains against the
dollar after Moody's ratings agency told Reuters there was
still a greater than 50 percent chance of a rating cut for
debt-stricken Greece in the next 12 to 18 months.
[]
After Bernanke's remarks the euro made a sharp push higher.
More buoyant risk sentiment pushed the Canadian dollar
<CAD=D3> back above parity against the U.S. unit to a peak of
C$0.9953, its strongest since mid-2008, according to Reuters
data.
Speculation of a stronger-than-expected reading of Chinese
first-quarter GDP also helped commodity currencies, which
include the Canadian dollar.
The Australian dollar <AUD=> rose 0.8 percent to $0.9355,
through a psychological barrier at $0.9300 though it failed to
top Monday's five-month peak just below $0.9400.
(Reporting by Nick Olivari; Editing by Andrew Hay)
