Forexpros – The euro was higher against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday, as demand for the single currency found some support after the March 20 deadline for Greece to avoid a default passed.
EUR/USD hit 1.3283 during late Asian trade, the pair’s highest since March 8; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.3260, gaining 0.28%.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.3171, Tuesday’s low and resistance at 1.3331, the high of March 2.
On Tuesday, Greece repaid EUR14.5 billion in maturing debt, just one day after receiving the first tranche of aid, under the terms of its second bailout.
While last week’s debt restructuring deal had minimized the risk of a default, relief at the safe passage of the bond redemption buoyed the shared currency.
Investors were looking ahead to a vote of confidence in Italy later in the day, which would allow Prime Minister Mario Monti’s government to press ahead with legislation to reform the country’s labor market.
The vote, which was expected to pass with a large majority, came one day after U.S. Treasury secretary Tim Geithner urged Europe’s wealthier members to help others in the region who are implementing tough economic reforms.
The euro was also higher against the pound and the yen, with EUR/GBP adding 0.16% to hit 0.8348 and EUR/JPY rising 0.20% to hit 110.91.
Later Wednesday, the U.S. was to release industry data on existing home sales.
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