TIMELINE: Milestones in euro's history; $1.6038 peak

LONDON (Reuters) - The euro rose to a record high of $1.6038 on Tuesday, as the U.S. dollar sank broadly on deepening concern about the U.S. financial system and less than two weeks after the European Central Bank raised interest rates.

The euro's return above $1.60 -- for the first time in three months -- represents a near doubling of the currency's value from its record low just above 82 cents in October 2000.

* July 15, 2008 - Euro sets record high at $1.6038 after U.S. government support for state-sponsored mortgage giants Fannie Mae (FNM.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and Freddie Mac (FRE.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) two days earlier fails to quell concerns about wider U.S. financial stability. Move comes 12 days after the European Central Bank lifted interest rates by a quarter point to 4.25 percent.

* April 22, 2008 - Euro scales $1.60 for the first time to trade as high as $1.6018, according to Reuters data, representing a near doubling in its value against the dollar from its low of $0.8225 struck in October, 2000.

* March 12, 2008 - Euro rises above $1.55 after stronger-than-expected euro zone industrial production data bolstered the view the ECB will resist from following the U.S. Federal Reserve's lead in cutting interest rates to protect the economy from the ongoing credit crisis.

* Feb 27, 2008 - Euro trades above the key psychological $1.50 barrier, after Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke signaled the central bank was ready to cut rates again in the face of mounting risks to economic growth. The Fed had already slashed its key Fed funds target rate by 225 basis points to 3 percent since mid-September in a bid to stem the economic impact form the global credit crisis.

* Oct 31, 2007 - Euro climbs above $1.45, for the first time ever, on the day the U.S. Federal Reserve ended a two-day policy meeting with a 25 basis point cut in its key interest rate to 4.50 percent. The Fed's cut was smaller than many analysts had expected, but fuelled expectations of more easing in the meeting's ahead and narrowed further the dollar's yield advantage over the euro to only half a percentage point.

* Oct 18, 2007 - Euro climbs above $1.43 for the first time ever to as high as $1.4310, according to Reuters data, as the dollar sags across the board on the back of Bank of America's earnings and weekly U.S. jobless claims data.

* Oct 1, 2007 - Euro prints a fresh all-time high of $1.4281, according to Reuters data, after tame U.S. inflation data fans expectations the Fed will soon deliver another rate cut.

* Sept 20, 2007 - Euro breaks above the psychological $1.40 level for the first time, continuing its rally since the Fed slashed its fed funds and discount rates by 50 basis points to 4.75 percent and 5.25 percent, respectively, on Sept 18 in a bid to contain the economic damage from the unfolding credit crisis.

* April 27, 2007 - Euro rises to $1.3682, according to Reuters data, past its previous peak around $1.3670 from December 2004, some 17 percent above its launch level in 1999 and 66 percent above the record low set in October 2000.

* Nov, 2006 - Euro breaks back above $1.30 for first time in 18 months as signs of a strong German economic recovery boosts ECB rate rise expectations, and continued talk of central banks diversifying reserves out of the dollar weighs on the greenback.

* Dec 1, 2005 - ECB raises key rates by a quarter percentage point from record low of 2 percent, the first in a series of hikes that takes rates as high as 3.75 percent by March 2007. Euro closes at $1.1732.

* Dec 30, 2004 - Euro trades at $1.3670, according to EBS data, after the dollar is hit by a wave of concern about the ballooning U.S. current account deficit. The soaring euro prompts ECB chief Trichet to warn markets that "brutal" moves in exchange rates were unwelcome.

* June 30, 2004 - Fed raises rates by a quarter percentage point from record low of 1 percent, the first in a series of hikes that take rates as high as 5.25 percent by June 2006. Euro closes at $1.2185.

* Feb 7, 2004 - G7 finance chiefs meeting in Boca Raton, Florida warn against "excess volatility" in foreign exchange markets. Euro closes at $1.2688 on Feb 9.  Continued...