* U.S. trade gap narrows, claims higher than forecast
* SNB says would act "decisively" on Swiss franc
* New Zealand dollar falls after RBNZ holds rates (Updates prices, adds comment)
By Wanfeng Zhou
NEW YORK, March 11 (Reuters) - The dollar traded littlechanged versus major currencies on Thursday after mixed data onU.S. trade and jobless claims failed to give investorsdirection.
The U.S. trade gap narrowed unexpectedly in January as oilimports fell while the number of U.S. workers filing newapplications for unemployment insurance was slightly higherthan expected last week, hinting at a slow labor marketrecovery. For details, see [ID:nN11203719]
"The data released this morning was unable to move themarket and especially against the euro, we"ve seen the dollarin a very tight range over the course of the week," said JohnDoyle, foreign-exchange strategist at Tempus Consulting inWashington.
"The dollar is really struggling to find direction and Ithink investors are likely to shift their focus to tomorrow"sretail sales number."
The Commerce Department is slated to release U.S. retailsales for February on Friday, with economists polled by Reuterslooking for a decline of 0.2 percent.
In late New York trading, the euro was up 0.1 percent at$1.3673 EUR=. The euro peaked intraday at $1.3687 with a lowof $1.3620, according to Reuters data.
The euro briefly came under pressure after GermanChancellor Angela Merkel said the first priority for Greece wasto win back the confidence of financial markets and thedebt-stricken country"s first steps were a positive start.[nAAT010127]
"There"s a perception that the Greek austerity plan is onlya temporary pause on sovereign debt risk, and there"s concernthat there could be problems in Portugal, Spain, Ireland," saidMichael Malpede, market analyst at Easy Forex in Chicago. "Ifanything, traders appear to have a preference to sell the euroon rallies."
The dollar JPY= was little changed at 90.53 yen, aftertouching a two-week high on Wednesday.
SWISS NATIONAL BANK EYED
The Swiss franc earlier fell after the Swiss National Banksaid it would act "decisively" to counter any excessive rise inthe Swiss currency.
The Swiss central bank"s announcement came as it leftinterest rates on hold and said signs of an economic recoverywere becoming more tangible. [ID:nZUX010014] [ID:nWEB5195]
The euro hit a session high of 1.4630 Swiss francsEURCHF= and was last flat at 1.4617 francs. The dollar CHF=fell 0.1 percent to 1.0688 francs.^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
For a graphic on moves in euro/Swiss franc on previousintervention rumors see:here ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Sterling rose 0.5 percent to $1.5057 after a slight uptickin inflation expectations, though analysts expected economicand political concerns to keep the pound under pressure aheadof an upcoming general election. [ID:nLDE62A1YO]
The Australian dollar AUD= last traded little changed atUS$0.9149, swinging between gains and losses after strongChinese data and a smaller-than-expected rise in Australianemployment.
Chinese inflation rose to a 16-month high and other datashowed broad-based strength, fueling expectations Beijing mayfurther tighten monetary policy. [ID:nBJL002012]
The New Zealand dollar fell 0.2 percent to $0.7004 afterthe central bank said there was no urgency to lift interestrates off their current record lows. [ID:nSGE62702P] (Additional reporting by Nick Olivari; editing by DianeCraft)
Currencies
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