Asian session: The euro rose against most of its major counterparts

The euro rose against most of its major counterparts after European governments agreed to provide Spain with a bailout loan. The 17-nation currency climbed to a two-week high after Spain asked for as much as 100 billion euros ($126 billion) to save its banking system, making it the fourth member in the currency bloc to seek a rescue. Seven months after winning a landslide victory, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy was forced to abandon his bid to recapitalize banks without external help. Foreign investors had cut holdings of the nation’s debt amid concern banks’ bad loans may overwhelm public finances, driving borrowing costs to near euro-era records.

The European currency has fallen 3.6 percent during the past six months, the worst performance among the 10 developed- nation currencies tracked by Bloomberg Correlation-Weighted Indexes. The dollar has gained 2.9 percent and the yen is little changed. Demand for the euro was limited before data today that may add to signs the debt crisis is damping growth. European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said on June 6 that policy makers discussed cutting interest rates to a record low at a meeting that day.

The dollar and yen fell on decreased demand for refuge assets as Asian shares rallied.

EUR/USD: during the Asian session the pair traded nearby $1.2630, after opening above $1.2600.

GBP/USD: during the Asian session the pair rose, having come nearer to the last week's high.

USD/JPY: during the Asian session the pair traded in range Y79.40-Y79.70.