By Ben Levisohn and Lukanyo Mnyanda April 9 (Bloomberg) -- The euro rose for a second day against the yen and dollar on speculation Greece will get an international bailout to avoid a default, possibly as soon as this weekend. The yen weakened against most of its major counterparts including the New Zealand dollar and South Korean won as stocks rose, boosting demand for currencies linked to growth. Canada’s dollar dropped from parity with its U.S. counterpart as data showed fewer jobs were added in March than forecast. European Union officials said they are ready to rescue Greece if needed. “There’s speculation that Europe will come up with the goods over the weekend,” said Andrew Wilkinson, senior market analyst at Interactive Brokers Group LLC in Greenwich, Connecticut. “While it has no firm foundation, how much longer can Greece go on pitching its bonds to international investors when the backstop is not being converted into reality?” The euro gained 0.6 percent to 125.54 yen 11:07 a.m. in New York, from 124.75 yesterday, and advanced 0.6 percent to $1.3443, from $1.3361. The yen was little changed at 93.39 per dollar, compared with 93.38 yesterday. European leaders announced on March 26 a support package with International Monetary Fund involvement to aid Greece if necessary. The euro pared gains after Fitch Ratings cut Greece’s long- term foreign and local currency issuer default ratings to BBB- from BBB+. The outlook is negative, Fitch said. Every major stock market in Europe advanced after Germany’s Federal Statistics Office said exports rose 5.1 percent in February after dropping a revised 6.5 percent the previous month. The MSCI World Index gained 0.7 percent, and the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index rose 0.3 percent. Emergency Aid Greece may need to seek emergency aid from the IMF within days as a surge in financing costs makes funding its budget deficit unsustainable, according to UBS AG. Yields on Greek two- year notes, which fell 4 basis points today, are still almost 200 basis points higher than they were a week ago. A basis point is 0.01 percentage point. “The recent market action means that an external intervention may be unavoidable and could happen very soon as the situation is untenable,” a UBS team including Chief European Economist Stephane Deo in London wrote in a note to investors yesterday. “We think an intervention over the weekend is a distinct possibility.” Billionaire investor George Soros said the EU should offer Greece loans more cheaply than it can borrow from investors to avoid pushing the nation into a “death circle.” ‘Concession Rate’ “Greece should not default, and there is a solution,” Soros told Bloomberg Television today. “There is a need to understand that when there is a rescue effort, which Europe is now putting together, it has got to be at a concession rate of interest, not at the market rate, because the market rate reflects only uncertainties and doubts about the political will to have a rescue.” The pound strengthened 0.5 percent to $1.5356 and fell 0.2 percent to 87.57 pence per euro, ending a nine-day stretch of gains. The cost of goods at U.K. factory gates increased a greater-than-forecast 0.9 percent in March from the previous month, the Office for National Statistics said today in London. South Korean Won South Korea’s won gained for a second week after EPFR Global reported equity funds focused on developing nations took in the most money in six months in the week ended April 7. The won was also supported by speculation China, the biggest buyer of South Korean exports, will let its currency strengthen. U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner met in Beijing yesterday with Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan amid rising pressure from American lawmakers for the yuan to be allowed to appreciate. “It’s just a matter of timing” before China’s currency appreciates, David Bloom, London-based global head of currency strategy at HSBC Holdings Plc, said in a Bloomberg Television interview. “We’re expecting 5 percent appreciation by the end of the year and another 5 percent in 2011. It’s something slow and gradual but when you accumulate it, it’s a reasonable move.” The won rose 0.5 percent today to 1,118.15 per dollar. The Canadian currency weakened as much as 0.6 percent in the biggest intraday decrease since March 24 before trading at C$1.0049 per U.S. dollar, down 0.3 percent from yesterday’s close at C$1.0021. The currency touched a level stronger than parity with the U.S. currency on April 6 for the first time since July 2008 and also reached that level on April 7 and earlier today. --With assistance from Candice Zachariahs in Sydney, Francine Lacqua, Gabi Thesing and Maryam Nemazee in London, Ron Harui in Singapore, Sandrine Rastello in Washington and Carli Lourens in Johannesburg. Editors: Greg Storey, Dennis Fitzgerald To contact the reporters on this story: Ben Levisohn in New York at blevisohn@bloomberg.net; Lukanyo Mnyanda in London at lmnyanda@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Robert Burgess at bburgess@bloomberg.net

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