Speculators boost dollar longs, stay short euro: CFTC

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Currency speculators increased their bets in favor of the U.S. dollar in the latest week, according to data from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission released on Friday.

The value of the dollar's net long position rose to $16.32 billion in the week ended December 13, from $14.59 billion the previous week.

Short positions in the euro rose sharply as faith in European leaders' ability to solve a two-year-old debt crisis waned.

European Union leaders agreed last week to impose stricter fiscal discipline on member countries. That has not stopped global investors from selling the euro, which dropped below $1.30 this week for the first time in nearly a year.

Speculators were also short the British pound and Canadian dollar.

To be short a currency is to bet it will decline in value, while being long is a view its value will rise.

The Reuters calculation for the aggregate U.S. dollar position is derived from net positions of International Monetary Market speculators in the yen, euro, British pound, Swiss franc, Canadian and Australian dollars.

(Reporting By Steven C. Johnson; Editing by James Dalgleish)