RTRS:FOREX-Dollar weak after Fed; Swiss franc dips on SNB
* U.S. dollar weak as Fed vows to keep rates low for two years
* Swiss franc falls after SNB measures but traders sceptical
* Euro/dollar steady, seen in range
By Jessica Mortimer
LONDON, Aug 10 (Reuters) - The dollar stayed weak on Wednesday after the U.S. Federal Reserve said it would keep rates near zero for two years, while the Swiss franc inched down on the back of further official steps to try and turn back its rise.
The Fed's extraordinary pledge sparked a rebound in riskier currencies such as the Australian dollar, helping them recover from recent steep falls.
The euro was also off its recent lows but remained vulnerable to concerns about the euro zone's now broad-based debt crisis, despite the European Central Bank's move to ease some of the pressure by buying peripheral debt.
These concerns, coupled with worries that the U.S. economy would stay weak despite the Fed's pledge, kept demand for the safe-haven Swiss franc and yen high.
The franc dipped after the Swiss National Bank expanded liquidity operations and vowed to take further measures against the strength of the Swiss franc, but analysts and traders believed it would do little to stem the franc's surge towards parity against the euro.
The euro gained 0.4 percent against the franc to 1.0427 francs in response, taking it further away from a record low around 1.0075 hit the previous day, though traders described the reaction to the SNB as "muted".
"The market initially thought they had intervened (in spot), but they haven't," said Peter Kinsella, currency strategist at Commerzbank.
"The SNB is playing a dangerous game. The closer to parity euro/Swiss gets, the harder it will be to defend against more franc strength."
The dollar also rose 0.3 percent against the Swiss franc to 0.7249 francs but was still vulnerable to another test of the previous day's record low of 0.7068 francs.
Against the yen it was down 0.3 percent at 76.86 yen, hovering close to its record low of 76.25 yen and keeping investors wary that Japanese authorities may step in again to stem gains in the Japanese currency.
The dollar's broad weakness left it 0.8 percent lower against a basket of currencies at 73.978. Against the euro it was steady at $1.4368 and it was down slightly against the Aussie at $1.0361.
"The outlook is rangebound for euro/dollar, with both currencies struggling with debt problems," said Ankita Dudani, currency strategist at RBS, adding that she expected euro/dollar to stay in a $1.40-1.45 range. (Additional reporting by Ian Chua in Sydney and Masayuki Kitano in Singapore)