Euro rises as European leaders meet

(AP) The euro is trading higher against the dollar as traders watch a series of meetings by European leaders this week.

Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras is visiting Germany and France and is expected to ask for an extension for Greece to meet fiscal targets as it carries out painful reforms.

And German Chancellor Angela Merkel will meet with French President Francois Hollande later this week to talk about the debt crisis.

On Monday, Germany's central bank again questioned the idea of buying bonds to lower borrowing costs for troubled European nations.

The euro rose to $1.2342 in afternoon trading from $1.2322 Friday.