The euro rose to a six-week high Friday as investors became more optimistic that Greece and its private-sector creditors would reach an agreement.
Reports on the progress of the talks, including a comment on Friday by Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos that Greece was one step away from concluding a deal on a €100 billion ($132 billion) debt write-down, helped build positive expectations. A deal has appeared close for much of the last week, but disagreements over coupon payments have stood in the way of an agreement.
The euro traded above $1.32 for the first time since Dec. 13, and stood at $1.3219 late Friday, up from $1.3109 on Thursday. That was its highest 5 p.m. rate since Dec. 9
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The currency's rise was briefly weakened after Fitch Ratings downgraded Italy, Spain, Belgium, Cyprus and Slovenia's sovereign debt ratings. But Fitch reaffirmed its rating on Ireland, and left France and Germany, the euro zone's biggest members, untouched.
For more: Euro Makes It Five Straight Gains Over Dollar - WSJ.com
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