ZAWYA: Euro climbs against dollar before Fed rate call
LONDON, Oct 29, 2008 (AFP) - The European single currency advanced against the dollar on Wednesday, ahead of a widely-expected steep interest rate cut from the US Federal Reserve.
In morning London trade, the euro rebounded to 1.2777 dollars, compared with 1.2767 late in New York on Tuesday, when it had briefly hit 1.2328 -- which was the lowest point since April 2006.
Against the Japanese currency, the greenback dipped to 97.21 yen, from 98.59.
Later on Wednesday, the Fed was expected to reduce its key lending rate, while speculation was growing that the Bank of Japan would lower its already super-low rates on Friday to shore up Asia's largest economy.
The US central bank was tipped to slash American borrowing costs by a half-point cut to 1.0 percent.
The US Federal Open Market Committee, headed by chairman Ben Bernanke, was expected to announce its decision at about 1815 GMT on Wednesday.
"The announcement will not come until the tail end of the London session so look for directionless and random moves as everybody tries to second-guess both the (Fed) decision and the market's reaction," said analysts at currency specialists Moneycorp in London.
Stock markets rallied even higher on Wednesday on hopes of a new round of global interest rate cuts to try and ward off a worldwide recession, analysts said.
Tokyo shares rocketed 7.74 percent, Sydney rose 1.3 percent, Mumbai was up 0.4 percent and Hong Kong finished 0.8 percent higher.
In European trade near the half-way stage, London surged 5.00 percent, Paris won 6.70 percent and Frankfurt added 0.22 percent.
"Like most analysts, we expect the Fed to cut by 50 base points," said Commerzbank analyst Antje Praefcke.
"This is unlikely to give euro/dollar new momentum. A smaller step may trigger a new wave of flight into quality, putting euro/dollar under renewed selling pressure."
The yen meanwhile rebounded against the dollar and the euro after falling sharply a day earlier on speculation about a possible interest rate cut in Japan this week.
The Japanese currency had tumbled Tuesday as world stock markets soared and a report said the Bank of Japan was considering cutting its super-low interest rates by 25 basis points to 0.25 percent on Friday.
"Even though some investors left the safety of the yen, a majority of short-term investors are likely to stick with the currency because the Japanese economy is relatively intact," said Hiroshi Sakurai, currency analyst at Mizuho Investors Securities.
"But in the longer term the yen will ease as hot money prefers investment in the United States or in Europe, once commercial banks -- which are in intensive care -- recuperate," he said.
The Nikkei business daily reported, without naming its sources, that the Bank of Japan (BoJ) was also "leaning toward" reducing its key interest rate on Friday.
In London morning trading on Wednesday, the euro changed hands at 1.2777 dollars against 1.2767 late Tuesday, at 123.98 yen (125.87), 0.7970 pounds (0.7982) and 1.4651 Swiss francs (1.4736).
The dollar stood at 97.21 yen (98.59) and 1.1488 Swiss francs (1.1541).
The pound was at 1.6005 dollars (1.5990).
On the London Bullion Market, the price of gold rose to 747.97 dollars an ounce from 730.50 dollars late on Tuesday.
