The euro rose against the dollar for a second straight session on Wednesday as investors pared hefty bearish positions, a trend that could prove temporary given concerns about Spain and Italy's rising debt yields and uncertainty ahead of Sunday's Greek election.
The dollar turned negative against the Japanese yen after government data showed US retail sales fell for a second straight month in May. The dollar was down 0.2 percent against the yen at 79.34 yen, according to Reuters data. The euro last traded up 0.6 percent at $1.2592, its strongest gain in a week. That was well above its near two-year low touched on June 1 at $1.2288, but still below a three-week high reached on Monday at $1.2672.