EU focus: Euro surges, yen faces renewed pressure

The euro and commodity currencies such as the Australian dollar rebounded on Wednesday.
Gains in U.S. and European shares on upbeat corporate results helped soothe market sentiment after nerves were rattled on Monday by S&P's warning on U.S. credit ratings and on fears that Greece will have to restructure its debt.

While those problems remain unresolved, the moves showed investors continue to favour higher-yielding currencies.
The yen got no help from data showing that Japan logged a smaller-than-expected trade surplus in March and that exports fell more than expected year-on-year, in a sign of the disruptions caused by a massive earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan's northeast on March 11.
Pound recovery from Monday's low has been capped, weighed by BoE minutes, which have failed to show any intention to "normalize" monetary policy in the short -term.
The BoE Monetary Policy Committee voted 6 to 3 to leave the Bank Rate at 0.5% all time low, which makes no change from the previous meeting, despite admitting the risk of inflation accelerating at an annual pace beyond 5% in the near-term.