The Euro had a bit of a mixed week last week with it both making gains and losses as data out releases created some concerns that the region’s economic recovery has stuttered to a halt.
At the start of the week the Euro made gains against the Pound and US Dollar as trade data out of the Eurozone came in better-than-expected. The report showed that exports out of the region increased whilst imports stagnated resulting in a widening of the regions balance of trade to a larger than forecast margin of €13.1 billion. Economists had been expecting an increase of €10 billion.
On Tuesday the single currency managed to climb to a session high against the US Dollar after the US currency was weighed down by speculation that the Federal Reserve won’t taper its easing programme until next year. Sterling meanwhile was refrained in light trading. The single currency was also supported after the ZEW institutes sentiment data out of Germany jumped to a four-year high.
Midweek the Euro dropped against its major peers due to rumours that the ECB is considering negative interest rates. Members of the ECB governing council also warned that the consequences of using negative rates are not clear. As a consequence the GBP/EUR pushed beyond the 1.20 mark.
On Thursday the currency reversed some of its losses to push higher against the US Dollar despite the release of negative data out of France and other Eurozone member states. Data also showed that confidence across the Eurozone fell more than forecast in November. The fall in confidence was a result of the weakening economy and the ECB’s action of cutting interest rates to a new record low level of 0.25% earlier in the month.
As the week drew to a close the Euro strengthened against several of its most traded peers after business confidence data out of Germany beat forecasts. The single currency was also supported after European Central Bank President Mario Draghi downplayed speculation that the bank was actively considering whether to cut deposit rates into negative territory.
Euro (EUR) Exchange Rates
As of 10:00 am GMT
The Euro/US Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.3513
The Euro/Pound Sterling Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.8346
The Euro/Australian Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.4764
The Euro/ New Zealand Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.6456
The Euro/ Canadian Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.4279
The Euro/ Japanese Yen Rate Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 137.4664
The Euro/Swiss Franc Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.2305
The Pound Sterling/ Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.1981
The US Dollar/Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.7399
The Australian Dollar/Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.6770
The New Zealand Dollar/Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.6074
The Canadian Dollar/Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.7001
Swiss Franc/Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.8127
Key events for the week ahead
Wednesday November 27th – German consumer confidence
Thursday November 28th – Eurozone Business Confidence data
German Inflation rate
German unemployment rate
Friday November 29th – German retail sales
French consumer spending
Eurozone Unemployment rate
Eurozone inflation rate