Reply #9: Future euro strength a worry - EU's Almunia

[Ghost Dog]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=102&topic_id=2922818&mesg_id=2922829

BILBAO, Spain, July 19 (Reuters) - Future euro strength is a concern although its appreciation against the dollar has yet to cause trade or current account imbalances, European Union Monetary Affairs Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said on Thursday.

"I'm worried ... looking to the future, if there are very rapid changes which aren't supported by fundamentals," Almunia told a conference in the northern Spanish town of Bilbao.

"Up until now, the appreciation has not had caused any trade or current account imbalance," he said, adding that the strength of global export demand had so far outweighed the negative impact of the euro's appreciation.

There was concern that the yen <JPY=> and dollar weakness were not backed by fundamentals, Almunia said.

The euro <EUR=> traded at around $1.38 on Thursday after reaching its strongest level since its launch in 1999, hitting a record $1.3834 on electronic trading platform EBS on Wednesday.

French President Nicolas Sarkozy has called for euro zone finance ministers to have a greater role in exchange rate policy.

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