LONDON: The euro slipped from an 11-month high against the dollar on Monday as investors took profits on its recent rally, although many were seeking to buy it at lower levels on growing optimism about a euro zone recovery.
The euro was flat on the day against the dollar at $1.3455, not far from the 11-month high of $1.3480 hit last Friday, with traders citing hedge funds as main sellers. Chartists said the $1.34 level which acted as a resistance on the way up would act as support.
The single currency will face a series of major resistance levels before $1.35, including its 2012 high of $1.34869 and the 50 percent retracement from the high in May 2011 to the low in July 2012 at $1.3492.
"We see some short term limits (in the euro) but there is a lot of good news priced in ... the risk of a euro zone break up has fallen to low levels," said Adam Cole, global head of FX strategy at RBC.
"Euro/dollar has become a much more opportunistic trade, so it is not surprising to see it run into some natural limits."
The euro rallied on Friday after data showed European banks are repaying more than expected of the loans they borrowed from the European Central Bank during the debt crisis, indicating growing confidence.
German data also provided evidence that Europe's largest economy is gathering pace after contracting late last year.
The ECB is the first major central bank to start moving away from unconventional monetary policy measures, unlike the US Federal Reserve and Bank of Japan, which are buying bonds to stimulate growth. More stimulus usually weighs down on a currency as it increases its supply.
The euro was trading near multi-month highs against the British pound and the Australian dollar.
Morgan Stanley in a note recommended investors to buy the euro against the Australian dollar. It targeted the euro to rise to A$1.3400, with a stop loss at A$1.2600, expecting more Japanese investors to buy euro zone assets.
The euro rose to a 21-month high of 122.91 yen, but slipped to trade down 0.4 percent on the day at 121.90 yen.
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