* Dollar in favour, jobs data reduces risk of Fed action * Fed, BOJ policy meetings this week in focus * Euro falls to lowest in nearly a month vs dollar, seen weak * Dollar index hits highest since Jan. 25 (Updates prices, adds comments) By Jessica Mortimer LONDON, March 12 (Reuters) - The dollar steadied after hitting its highest level in nearly a month versus the euro on Monday as upbeat U.S. jobs data last week made further monetary stimulus from the Federal Reserve less likely. The dollar also hit its highest in nearly 7 weeks against a basket of currencies and analysts expected it to strengthen if U.S. data showed further signs of economic recovery. The euro was expected to struggle in the coming weeks as relief at Greece's debt restructuring gave way to concerns over euro zone growth and the risk of the crisis spreading. The euro was steady at $1.3114, having earlier dipped to $1.3079 on trading platform EBS, its lowest level since Feb. 16. The euro's low coincided with solid support at the 55-day moving average, though one trader said a close below $1.3080 could prompt some hedge funds to increase short euro positions. Below there further chart support stood around $1.3055, the 50 percent retracement of its January to February rally. The dollar index rose to 80.132, its highest since Jan. 25, before slipping back to 79.966. Friday's U.S. jobs data showed employers added more than 200,000 workers for a third straight month in February, a sign the recovery was gathering pace. "Less QE (quantitative easing) in the U.S. is positive for the dollar ... I think the dollar will do better against the yen, euro and sterling," RBS currency strategist Paul Robson said. "In Europe the weakest data is in the countries with the weakest fiscal position, which is worrying and it's still a case of selling euros on any rallies." RBS expects the euro to fall to $1.26 over the next two to three months, though Robson said this assumed U.S. data stayed positive over the coming weeks. A Reuters poll conducted after the release of Friday's jobs report showed recent signs of improvement in the U.S. labour market were spurring economists at major Wall Street firms to scale back expectations of further QE. The dollar dipped 0.3 percent against the yen to 82.12 yen on profit-taking after it hit a near 11-month high of 82.65 yen on Friday. U.S. bond yields rose on the upbeat jobs data, boosting the dollar's appeal versus the low-yielding yen. EURO STRUGGLES The euro struggled after what traders described as a buy-the-rumour-sell-the-fact fall on Greece's bond swap deal with private creditors which will clear the way for a new bailout. "There's a risk of euro/dollar sustaining a move below $1.31," said Mitul Kotecha, head of global foreign exchange strategy for Credit Agricole in Hong Kong. "There's worries about whether Portugal will follow Greece, whether Greece will need another bailout, whether the underlying issues in the country will be resolved." A focal point for the market this week will be policy decisions by the Bank of Japan and the U.S. Federal Reserve, both of which are due on Tuesday. The BOJ's monetary policy has been in the spotlight since its surprise easing in February. Most traders expected the BOJ to refrain from further easing though some saw a risk of action that would spark a sell-off in the yen. The Australian dollar was down 0.6 percent at $1.0508 after China reported a $31.5 billion trade deficit, confounding forecasts of a $5 billion shortfall and raising concerns about the outlook for the world's second largest economy. (Additional reporting by Masayuki Kitano in Singapore, editing by Nigel Stephenson)

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