FOREX-Euro rises as France.

FOREX-Euro rises as France, Germany exit recession


Upside surprises in German, French GDP buoy euro

* U.S. retail sales and jobless claims data disappoint

* Euro zone economy shrinks just 0.1 pct in 2nd quarter (Updates prices)

By Steven C. Johnson

NEW YORK, Aug 13 (Reuters) - The euro rose against the dollar for the second straight session on Thursday as data showed the euro zone's two biggest economies unexpectedly returned to growth in the second quarter of the year.


News that Germany and France pulled out of recession in the April-to-June period contrasted with disappointing U.S. retail sales data for July, which cast a shadow over an anticipated consumer rebound and sent the dollar lower against the yen.

The retail sales report and figures showing a surprise jump in U.S. workers filing first-time jobless claims last week came a day after the Federal Reserve gave its clearest signal yet that it thinks the U.S. recession is nearing an end.

"The (European) data definitely caused a rethink of what to expect from the euro zone and people are jumping all over the euro," said Andrew Wilkinson, senior market analyst at Interactive Brokers Group in Greenwich, Connecticut.

He said markets also expect the U.S. economy to recover but said Thursday's data was a reminder that "U.S. consumers are still looking at a massive debt burden that won't go away soon," suggesting a "slow and protracted" recovery.

The euro was last up 0.7 percent at $1.4282 EUR= after rising to $1.4327, its highest in a week, according to Reuters data.