The greenback stepped off 11-year highs hit against the euro
earlier Monday after anti-austerity Syriza party swept to victory in
elections in Greece, sparking fears about Greece's future in the euro
zone.
EUR/USD was up 0.28% to 1.1234, recovering from overnight lows of 1.1099, the weakest since September 2003.
The common currency steadied as markets shrugged off concerns over Syriza’s pledge to renegotiate the terms of Greece's €240 billion international bailout and reverse many of the austerity measures imposed by the European Union and International Monetary Fund.
Market sentiment
continued to be underpinned after the European Central Bank unveiled a
€1.2 trillion asset purchase program last week, aimed at combatting
slowing growth and inflation in the euro area, says Investing.com.
The euro also gained ground against the yen and the Swiss franc, with EUR/JPY last up 0.55% to 132.71 and EUR/CHF advancing 1.88% to 1.0014.
Europe's main share markets also rose - after initial falls - on hopes that a compromise over Greece's bailout terms might be found.
The euro had already been under pressure following last week's announcement of a new stimulus programme by the European Central Bank.
Stock markets in Paris and Frankfurt were about 0.5% higher in mid-morning trading, while London's FTSE 100 was up 0.2%. In Athens, the main share market fell 5% at the open, with banks hardest hit. But the index recovered to trade about 1% lower.
"The expectation that there will be a government formed today
and (that) we will avoid a second round of elections should provide
support," said Constantine Morianos, head of Athens-based Asset Wise
Capital Management, quoted by BBC World News.
Yields on Greece's 10-year government bonds rose 19 basis points to 8.95%, but are still below the level before last week's ECB stimulus programme was announced.
Syriza leader Alexis Tsipras said he wanted negotiation, not confrontation, with Greece's international lenders. However, he also said that the Troika is a matter of past for Greece.
