* Euro up as firm oil prices spur short-covering
* Charts show euro supported around $1.4000
* Dollar/yen little changed, faces resistance near 82.20-30 yen
By Chikafumi Hodo and Antoni Slodkowski
TOKYO, May 26(Reuters) - The euro regained some ground against the dollar on Thursday as a sharp recovery in oil prices induced short-covering, but lingering uncertainty over debt problems in Greece and other euro zone countries were expected to limit strong follow-up buying.
The safe-haven Swiss franc backed off from record high levels against the euro
The euro took a breather in early Asian trade as the dollar
was weighed down slightly by strength in U.S. crude oil futures
prices
"We really don't know how debt problems in Greece and other euro zone areas will be resolved, which would be negative for the euro, but for now strong oil prices are helping the single currency," said Junya Tanase, forex strategist at J.P. Morgan Chase Bank.
"Higher crude oil prices above $100 could be negative for the dollar, while the euro could benefit," Tanase said.
The euro was trading up 0.2 percent at $1.4120
The euro firmed against the Swiss franc, standing at $1.2321
"Safe-haven demand is keeping the Swiss franc buoyant, especially against the euro, but it's tough to take new longs in the Swissie from current levels," said a forex dealer at a Japanese securities house.
The euro gained some support the previous day after Finland approved an EU/IMF bailout for Portugal, while demand from hedge funds also prompted a squeeze in euro short positions.
The market lacked energy to push the single currency further down, with a slew technical support levels cited below the psychologically important $1.4000-level.
The euro faced chart support at the 100-day moving average, now at $1.3996, while stop-loss offers are said to be lurking near $1.3968, a two-month low struck earlier this week on trading platform EBS.
Below that point, $1.3770 was seen as important as it is the 38.2 percent Fibonacci retracement of the euro's rise from June 2010 to May 2011.
On the upside, resistance for the euro was looming around $1.43 -- the area where the euro moved in the first half of May, a trader at a Japanese bank said.
The greenback was little changed around 82 yen
Market players were looking to test its one-month high of 82.20-30 yen in the near term.
Tokyo dealers said some offers were cited around the high of 82.20 yen, but that the dollar may pick up momentum should resistance be broken, Tokyo dealers said.
Stop-loss sell orders were cited at 81.80 yen and 81.20/30 yen, while U.S. and European investors, as well as macro hedge funds, showed appetite for buying dollars on dips, they said. (Additional reporting by Naohiro Kubo in Tokyo; Editing by Joseph Radford)