The euro gained today as the Eurozone Purchasing Managers’ Index rose in December, signaling that the European economy slowly recovers and the fears of the financial crisis may recede.

The Markit Eurozone Manufacturing PMI in its final revision advanced to 57.1 in December, the highest reading since April, compared to the previous estimate of 56.8. The growth was led by Germany, France, Austria and the Netherlands. Germany’s PMI climbed from 58.1 in November to 60.7 in December, the highest level since July.

The report said that manufacturing indexes in all Eurozone countries, except France and Greece, rose in December. France’s PMI decreased somewhat, but nevertheless was fourth highest among indexes of other countries. Greece’s PMI remained far below the level of 50.0, which indicates no change, yet showed signs of improvement.

EUR/USD traded near 1.3360 as of 21:59 GMT, rising from the opening level of 1.3343 after it declined to the intraday low of 1.3250. EUR/JPY climbed from the opening price of 108.24 to 109.19, following the drop to the intraday low of 107.78. EUR/GBP traded at about 0.8624 after it opened at 0.8581 and fell as low as 0.8540.

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