By: Barbara Zigah

The Euro continues to rally in Asia trading on the news that the IMF intends to bolster its funds in order to help the Eurozone’s leaders tackle the ongoing crisis there. The IMF said that they are striving to raise some $600 billion from new resources to assist with the potential fallout of the Eurozone crisis. As reported at 11:55 a.m., the Euro was trading at $1.2880, up from New York’s late trade of $1.2855 and moving well off $1.2624, a 17-month low which was struck on Friday on the EBS trading platform. Analysts say that if there is a break above $1.2879, traders can expect $1.2946 to be the next test.

The Euro was also higher against the Japanese Yen, trading at 98.70 Yen, just off the 2-week high of 98.80 Yen which was struck yesterday. Records show that the Euro has gained nearly 2% against the safe haven Yen since touching on an 11-year low earlier this week. Despite relentless pressure, some analysts believe the rally could continue to run in the short term.

However, the rally could be short-lived unless the Greek government reaches a deal with its creditors to swap out €14.5 billion in bonds which are maturing in March. Failure to negotiate a deal pushes the possibility of default to the fore yet again.