By Tommy Wilkes
LONDON (Reuters) - The euro recovered on Thursday from its weakest since late June 2017 and the dollar fell after news that a Chinese delegation will travel to the United States for trade talks, with investors buying back into currencies hit hard in the recent sell-off.
Many emerging market currencies also rose, clawing back some of Wednesday's losses thanks to easing fears over the knock-on effects from a slide in the Turkish lira.
Global equity markets were mixed, however, underlining how nervous investors remain.
"That China and the U.S. are beginning to talk again is supporting the market," said Commerzbank (DE:CBKG) currencies strategist Thu Lan Nguyen. "As the (Turkish) lira did not depreciate further, that has taken out some tension from the market."
She also emphasized that the currency crisis in Turkey is far from over because authorities have yet to tackle the root causes.
More important for major currencies on Thursday were developments in the months-long trade conflict between the United States and China.
China's Ministry of Commerce said it had received an invitation from the United States for talks to be held with U.S. Under Secretary of Treasury for International Affairs David Malpass.
The euro rose 0.2 percent to $1.1367 (EUR=), away from Wednesday's low of $1.1301.
The dollar, which has gained on bouts of investor jitters as traders seek safety in the higher-yielding and most liquid currency, fell after a recent strong run. The dollar index slipped 0.1 percent to 96.613 (DXY).
China's yuan, which has fallen in recent months on concerns about the impact on its economy of the trade conflict with the United States, gained 0.7 percent in offshore markets to 6.9005
APPARENT CALM
Emerging market currencies bounced across the board, including the South African rand
Turkey's lira rallied about 3 percent to 5.7923
Despite Thursday's calm, analysts remain cautious about the outlook for markets, particularly those outside of the United States that have looked vulnerable whenever investors get nervous.
Simon Derrick, chief currency strategist at BNY Mellon, said "a seeming disconnect between U.S. markets and those elsewhere is becoming increasingly obvious", given the performance of U.S. equities and the dollar in 2018.
"The risk is that the apparent calm in U.S. markets may be giving U.S. investors a false read about how volatile the next few months might prove for global markets," Derrick said.
The yen paused after its recent run, with the dollar gaining 0.1 percent to 110.84 yen
Norway's crown (EURNOK=) fell slightly against the euro after the Norwegian central bank kept interest rates on hold and reiterated it planned to hike in September. It was largely unmoved against the dollar, up 0.6 percent on the day
The Australian dollar, seen as a proxy for China-related trades, climbed 0.4 percent to $0.7265