NEW YORK, April 22 (Reuters) - The euro extended gains on Tuesday and traded above $1.60 for the first time since its 1999 inception amid growing expectations that the European Central Bank’s next move may be a hike in benchmark interest rates.

In midmorning trading in New York, the euro rose as high as $1.6002, a record, according to Reuters data. It last traded 0.5 percent higher at $1.5981 EUR=. (Reporting by Vivianne Rodrigues; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)