By Takashi Mochizuki Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES TOKYO (Dow Jones)--The dollar and euro fell against the yen in Asia Thursday as Chinese second-quarter growth disappointed some investors and prompted hedge funds to reduce risky bets by selling the two currencies. The U.S. and European units began falling soon after the release of Chinese data, which showed the economy expanded 7.9% during the April-June period from a year ago. The finding was slightly better than the 7.7% growth forecast of economists polled by Dow Jones Newswires. But in the immediate run-up to the data announcement, some aggressive players had increased holdings of the two units to price in bets that the growth rate may turn out to be well above 8%. Along with selling by Japanese exporters, orders by these funds pushed the dollar to Y93.81 from its intraday high of Y94.45. The euro also declined to Y132.02 from Y133.08. CNBC's report saying that CIT Group Inc. (CIT) is likely to file for bankruptcy Friday was also weighing on the dollar, dealers said. Looking ahead, dealers say that U.S. firms' earnings reports and share price movements will remain as the key determinants of the currency market. But they are divided over trading directions. Some said the dollar has entered a rising trend and the risk of its plunge toward Y90 is almost gone for now. "We tried to push the dollar down below Y91.50 three times but we could not make it. It might be better for us to find dollar-positive trading factors," said Mitsuru Sahara, a senior dealer at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ. The greenback reversed its course after it briefly touched Y91.73 on Monday. Others, meanwhile, said the dollar's rising momentum is unclear and its drop below Y91.50 this week is still possible. "The data results from the U.S. are mixed, and it's possible coming data may register surprisingly negative figures," said Shinichi Hayashi, a senior dealer at Shinkin Central Bank. The U.S. unit was trading around Y93.88 and the euro was around Y132.10, lower than Y94.36 and Y133.12 on New York Wednesday. Elsewhere, the euro was at $1.4070 as of 0450 GMT, lower than $1.4112 in New York overnight. Interbank Foreign Exchange Rates At 00:50 EDT / 0450 GMT Latest Previous %Chg Daily Daily %Chg Dollar Rates 2150 GMT High Low 12/31 USD/JPY Yen 93.86-89 94.26-28 -0.42 94.44 93.87 +3.60 EUR/USD Euro 1.4068-72 1.4106-10 -0.27 1.4107 1.4062 +0.64 GBP/USD Sterling 1.6387-91 1.6420-23 -0.20 1.6437 1.6383 +12.04 USD/CHF Swiss Franc 1.0775-78 1.0747-52 +0.26 1.0778 1.0746 +0.99 USD/CAD Canadian Dlr 1.1205-08 1.1151-56 +0.48 1.1208 1.1129 -7.89 AUD/USD Australian Dlr 0.7976-77 0.8031-36 -0.68 0.8034 0.7975 +12.77 NZD/USD New Zealand Dlr 0.6394-99 0.6492-99 -1.51 0.6498 0.6398 +9.58 EUR/JPY Yen 132.08-10 132.92-97 -0.63 133.05 132.08 +4.30 -By Takashi Mochizuki, Dow Jones Newswires; 813-6895-7554; takashi.mochizuki@dowjones.com

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