The euro advanced this week despite risk aversion sentiment, caused by the unrest in Middle East, as the European Central Bank signaled that an increase of the interest rates isn’t out of question.

The Swiss franc gained as the unrest in Middle East and the surging oil prices increased appeal of safer assets, including Switzerland’s currency.

The positive reports about the employment in the US weren’t been able to boost the dollar strong enough to help it to appreciate against other currencies. The good US economic data slowed the rally of the euro, but didn’t manage to reverse the upward momentum of the European currency.

The Great Britain pound extended its losses versus the US dollar and the euro today after the report showed that the house prices in Britain decline more than forecast last month.

The Asian currencies, including the South Korean won, jumped today on the speculation that the policy makers won’t intervene to prevent gains.

The Australian dollar fell against its US counterpart as the employment in the US improved. The currency also slipped versus the euro on the speculation that the European Central Bank will increase the interest rates before the Reserve Bank of Australia.

The US dollar strengthened versus the Great Britain pound and the Japanese yen as the macroeconomic reports showed that the US jobs market improved, causing optimism about the future of the US economy. The currency retreated against the euro.

The gains of the Norwegian krone caused the concerns that the stronger currency will hurt competitiveness of the nation’s exporters. The currency fell today after it sharply advanced on the previous trading session.

The euro rose today for the second day against the US dollar as European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet said that the bank may increase the interest rates next month because of the inflation pressure.