TOKYO, Sep 11 The dollar hovered near a 15-year low against a basket of currencies today,

TOKYO, Sep 11 (Reuters) The dollar hovered near a 15-year low against a basket of currencies today, with players expecting the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates next week as the US economy shows signs of adverse effects from the credit market turmoil.

The dollar remained pressured after heavy selling following Friday's data, which showed that companies cut 4,000 jobs in August, the first such fall in four years.

''The market has built a consensus that the jobs data has made it easier for the Fed to cut rates by 50 basis points, not 25 basis points as generally thought before the figures,'' said a senior dealer at a European bank.

Federal Reserve Board Governor Frederic Mishkin said late on Monday the possibility that adverse effects of U.S. financial market turmoil could spread beyond the housing sector and dampen consumer and business spending poses an important downside risk to the economy.

''That scenario cannot, in my view, be ruled out and I believe it poses an important downside risk to economic activity,'' Mishkin said.

The Fed is monitoring financial markets carefully and is prepared to act as needed to mitigate adverse effects on the economy from disruptions, he said.

Market reaction to Mishkin's comments was limited.

Later today Fed Chairman Ben Bernkanke will speak in Berlin.

The dollar's trade-weighted index against six major currencies firmed to 79.870 but remained near a 15-year low of 79.788.

The dollar was nearly unchanged at 113.60 yen off yesterday's low of 112.60 yen on electronic trading platform EBS, its lowest since mid-August.

The euro was also little changed at $1.3795 holding near a one-month high of $1.3816 hit on Monday.

Traders said the euro was supported by views that the European Central Bank could still boost rates once financial markets stabilise.

The ECB held euro-zone rates steady last week, as did central banks in Britain, Australia and Canada. But ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet said inflation remains a concern, suggesting rate hikes may soon resume.

The market showed a muted reaction to data released early on Tuesday showing Japan's core private-sector machinery orders, a key gauge of corporate capital spending, rose 17.0 percent in July from the previous month, far exceeding a market forecast for a 5.3 per cent rise.

Traders said they would be closely watching financial results from US securities firms due this month to see how their earnings have been affected by the recent credit market upheaval.

Lingering concerns over a worsening of the credit squeeze would keep risk aversion intact and support the yen against high-yielding currencies for now, traders said.

The high-yielding Australian dollar eased 0.2 percent against the yen and the New Zealand dollar fell 0.3 percent versus the Japanese currency.

REUTERS TB RN0622