Euro Rises Amid Risk Appetite

The euro strengthened against most major currencies ahead of European session on Friday amid risk appetite, with some companies posting strong gains in the corporate earnings.

The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index is currently up 0.57 percent or 37.87 points at 6,668, France's CAC 40 index is up 0.58 percent or 28.9 points at 5,046 and Germany's DAX is up 0.40 percent or 45.30 points at 11,257.

Traders await the eurozone data, such as inflation and unemployment figures, due to be released shortly. Flash inflation is forecast to remain unchanged at 0.2 percent in July. The jobless rate is expected to drop to 11 percent in June from 11.1 percent in May.

EU harmonized inflation is seen rising to 0.3 percent in July from 0.2 percent in June.

In Greece, the Hellenic nation's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras will hold an emergency party congress in September to reassert his control over the left-wing Syriza party, who opposed bailout talks.

In other economic news, data from Destatis showed Germany's retail sales fell a calendar and seasonally adjusted 2.3 percent month-on-month in June, in contrast to a 0.4 percent rise in May. Economists had expected a 0.3 percent increase for the month. It was the first fall in three months.

On an annual basis, retail sales grew 5.1 percent in June, exceeding economists' expectations for a 4.0 percent hike. In May, sales had dropped 1.0 percent, which was revised from a 0.4 percent decline.

In the Asian trading, the euro held steady against its major rivals.

Ahead of European session today, the euro rose to a 3-day high of 1.6662 against the NZ dollar and a 2-day high of 1.4269 against the Canadian dollar, from early lows of 1.6515 and 1.4200, respectively. If the euro extends its uptrend, it is likely to find resistance around 1.68 against the kiwi and 1.45 against the loonie.

The euro advanced to 0.7025 against the pound and 136.09 against the yen, from early lows of 0.7002 and 135.57, respectively. The euro may test resistance near 0.71 against the pound and 137.00 against the yen.

Against the U.S. and the Australian dollars, the euro edged up to 1.0966 and 1.5046 from early lows of 1.0927 and 1.4973, respectively. On the upside, 1.11 against the greenback and 1.53 against the aussie are seen as the next resistance levels for the euro.

Looking ahead, Eurozone unemployment rate for June and CPI for July are set to be published shortly.

In the New York session, Canada GDP for May, U.S. Chicago PMI for July and University of Michigan's final U.S. consumer sentiment index for July are due.