Euro climbs after Spanish debt sale The euro rose against the dollar after successful bond auctions in Spain and Italy ahead of a decision from the European Central Bank on whether to cut interest rates further. The single currency gained ground after Spain raised more than its target amount and both the Spanish and Italian governments attracted lower borrowing costs for their short-term debt than at previous auctions. The euro touched about $1.31 against the dollar, hitting a session high of $1.3107 to rise 0.3 per cent ahead of the ECB meeting. Investors were widely expecting no immediate change to the eurozone's main refinancing rate of 0.75 per cent on Thursday, with the ECB due to announce its decision at 12.45 GMT. But many were focusing on the statement and press conference at 1.30 GMT for any indication of future cuts to aid the eurozone's sluggish economy. The recessionary backdrop will keep the option of a rate cut alive, although the current lull in the crisis suggests little reason for the ECB to use up any more of its ammunition right now. The euro-dollar is unlikely to see any lasting impact from today's meeting," said Jane Foley, foreign currency strategist at Rabobank. The pound was 0.1 per cent lower against the dollar at $1.6010 ahead of a decision on interest rates from the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee at midday, with no changes expected. Analysts at Commerzbank said: "The MPC will not want to portray a strong bias in terms of future policy direction before the arrival of future BoE governor Carney later in the year. Thus, for the moment, this is very much a lame duck MPC. The Japanese yen fell against other major currencies after Shinzo Abe, Japan's prime minister, reiterated his call for the Bank of Japan to implement a higher inflation target that would aid yen weakness after a meeting with the central bank governor. The dollar rose 0.3 per cent to Y88.31, while the euro gained 0.4 per cent to Y115.39. Elsewhere, the Australian dollar rallied along with most Asian currencies against the US dollar after strong trade data from China improved sentiment on the region. The Aussie rose 0.6 per cent to $1.0575 against the dollar after Chinese exports in December beat expectations.