(RTTNews) - In early European deals on Thursday, the euro soared against other major currencies as a report showed that the euro zone posted a larger-than-expected trade surplus in July. The euro climbed to near a 2-week high against the Canadian dollar, 5-week high against the greenback and the yen, 10-day high against the franc, 15-day high against the NZ dollar and a 9-day high against the Aussie.
The European Union's statistics agency Eurostat said today the 16 countries that use the euro had a combined surplus in their trade in goods with the rest of the word of 6.7 billion euros, up from a surplus of 2.2 billion euros in June.
The surplus came as a surprise to economists, who had estimated it to fall to 1.3 billion euros.
The euro climbed against the currencies of U.S. and Japan in early European deals on Thursday. At present, the euro is trading at a 5-week high of 1.3079 against the dollar and 112.01 against the yen, compared to yesterday's close of 1.3007 and 111.56, respectively. If the yen euro gains further, it may likely target 114.0 against the yen and 1.333 against the dollar.
The euro that fell to 1.2992 against the Swiss franc at 1:55 am ET Thursday strengthened thereafter. The euro-franc pair that closed yesterday's trading at 1.3054 is currently trading at a 10-day high of 1.3098. The next upside target level for the European currency is seen at 1.315.
The franc climbed against the euro in late Asian deals today as the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) raised its economic growth forecast for the Swiss economy from 1.8% to 2.7%.
But the franc failed to move for the Swiss second quarter industrial production report released at 3:15 am ET.
In early European deals on Thursday, the euro spiked up against the Canadian dollar. As of now, the euro-loonie pair is trading near a 2-week high of 1.3423 with 1.357 seen as the next upside target level. At yesterday's close, the pair was quoted at 1.3356.
The euro that traded at a 10-day high against the New Zealand dollar in Asian deals on Thursday on RBNZ interest rate announcement strengthened further during early European session. The euro-kiwi pair is now trading at a 15-day high of 1.8036, compared to Wednesday's close of 1.7786. The next upside target level for the euro is seen at 1.820.
Earlier in the day, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand held the Official Cash Rate at 3% and said the pace and extent of further OCR increases was likely to be more moderate than was projected in the June statement.
During early European deals on Thursday, the euro strengthened against the Australian dollar. At present, the euro-aussie pair is trading at a 9-day high of 1.3956, compared to yesterday's closing value of 1.3910. If the euro advances further, it may likely target the 1.400 level.
The euro that declined to a 3-day low of 0.8312 against the pound in early Thursday Asian deals rebounded in the latter part of the session and climbed further during early European deals. The euro-pound pair is now worth 0.8390 with 0.840 seen as the next upside target level. The pair closed yesterday's trading at 0.8328.
The pound tumbled in early European session as a report showed that U.K.'s retail sales unexpectedly declined in August.
Looking ahead, the Swiss National Bank is scheduled to announce its interest rate decision at 8:00 am ET. The central bank is widely expected to leave rates unchanged at 0.25%.
Across the Atlantic, the U.S. PPI for August, weekly jobless claims data for the week ended September 11, Treasury Department's report on the flows of financial instruments into and out of the U.S. for June and the results of the Philadelphia Federal Reserve's manufacturing survey are slated for release in the North American session.
