Dollar Steadies After Greece Secures Bailout

(RTTNews) - The dollar trimmed its losses versus the euro Tuesday morning, after European finance ministers late Monday night approved terms for a fresh aid package for Greece. The deal provides 130 billion euros in bailout money for the debt-ridden nation.

The dollar fought back to $1.32 versus the euro, up about a penny from last night's lows near $1.3310.

The European Central Bank said that it made no purchase of Eurozone government bonds last week, halting the emergency debt buying program for the first time since August.

The dollar stabilized near $1.58 versus the sterling, after testing $1.60 on increased risk appetite last night. The sterling was supported by strong housing figures from the U.K.

The average asking price for a house in the United Kingdom jumped 1.4 percent on year in January, property tacking website Rightmove said on Monday. That followed the 0.4 percent increase in December. On a monthly basis, asking prices surged 4.1 percent - the higher increase in more than a decade.

British retail sales rose 0.9 percent in January compared with December last year, the Office for National Statistics said Friday.

The dollar was up a bit versus the safe haven yen, closing in on the Y80 mark before leveling off near Y79.

Today's economic calendar in the U.S. is light, following the long weekend. A trickle of data will build up to some crucial housing figures later in the week.

The Chicago Federal Reserve's National Activity Index used for measuring overall economic activity and inflationary pressure is set to be released at 8:30 am ET.

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