2018.06.2903:55:00UTC+00Euro Climbs As EU Leaders Reach Deal On Migration

The euro advanced against its major opponents in the Asian session on Friday, as EU leaders have reached an agreement on migration, averting a political crisis in Germany, where Chancellor Angela Merkel's coalition government was under strain over migrant policy.

Under the agreement, EU countries would set up joint asylum processing sites and restrict migrants' moves with the bloc. "All the measures in the context of these controlled centres, including relocation and resettlement, will be on a voluntary basis," the joint statement said.

These centres would process migrants to determine which are genuine refugees and which are "irregular migrants, who will be returned."

Merkel hailed the deal, but acknowledged that the EU still had "a lot of work to do to bridge the different views".

Merkel was due to speak to Interior minister Horst Seehofer later Friday and their parties are scheduled to meet separately in Berlin and Munich to assess the deal.

Asian stocks were higher, following positive cues overnight from Wall Street and on news that China has eased restrictions on foreign investment amid rising trade tensions with the U.S.

The euro climbed to a 2-day high of 1.1666 against the greenback, from a low of 1.1558 seen at 6:00 pm ET. The euro is poised to challenge resistance around the 1.185 level.

The single currency advanced to 129.15 against the yen, its strongest since June 14. The euro is seen finding resistance around the 130.00 region.

Data from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism showed that Japan's housing starts grew unexpectedly in May.

Housing starts advanced 1.3 percent annually, faster than the 0.3 percent increase seen in April. Housing starts were forecast to drop 5.7 percent in May.

The euro advanced to more than a 2-week high of 1.1588 versus the franc and a 3-1/2-month high of 0.8891 versus the pound, reversing from its early lows of 1.1524 and 0.8836, respectively. On the upside, 1.17 and 0.90 are possibly seen as the next resistance levels for the euro versus the franc and the pound, respectively.

The single currency strengthened to a 1-1/2-month high of 1.7204 against the kiwi and a 2-day high of 1.5788 against the aussie, from its early lows of 1.7105 and 1.5720, and held steady thereafter. The euro is seen finding resistance around 1.74 against the kiwi and 1.59 against the aussie.

Reversing from an early 10-day low of 1.5320 against the loonie, the euro edged up to 1.5426. The next likely resistance for the euro is seen around the 1.55 level.

Looking ahead, German jobless rate for June, U.K. mortgage approvals for May and final GDP data for the first quarter, as well as Eurozone preliminary CPI data for June are due in the European session.

In the New York session, Canada GDP data for April and industrial product price index for May, U.S. personal income and spending data for May and final consumer sentiment index for June are scheduled for release.