The Euro weakened against the Pound and a number of other currencies on Friday as the market were hit by a case of the jitters following the publication of data which showed that private lending in the currency bloc plunged to a record low in November.
A European Central Bank report showed that lending to the private sector in the Eurozone tumbled at its sharpest rate since records began over 20 years ago in November. The data suggests that the region will see its economic recovery come under heavy pressure.
According to the ECB report lending in the euro zone declined by 2.3% on the year, after a 2.2% decline in October. The deepening decline increases pressure on the central bank to embark on further measures to stimulate lending, said economists.
Also weighing upon the single currency was the release of official data from the National Bureau of statistics and the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing, China’s non-manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI) fell to 54.6% in December, down from the 56% recorded in November. A reading above 50 indicates expansion, whereas a figure below hints at contraction.
Against the commodity based currencies of the New Zealand, Australian and Canadian Dollars the Euro fell fairly heavily as those currencies benefitted from a bout of profit taking by investors seeking bargains and increased for higher yielding assets.
The Eurozone did find minor support from the release of data which showed that inflation in Spain and Italy did not decline as some economists had been predicting. Consumer confidence in Spain however fell in December from November’s reading of 72.3 to 71.0.
Euro (EUR) Exchange Rates
As of 12:00 pm GMT
The Euro/US Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.3642
The Euro/Pound Sterling Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.8284
The Euro/Australian Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.5192
The Euro/ New Zealand Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.6483
The Euro/ Canadian Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.4511
The Euro/ Japanese Yen Rate Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 142.4668
The Euro/Swiss Franc Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.2295
The Pound Sterling/ Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.2067
The US Dollar/Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.7330
The Australian Dollar/Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.6582
The New Zealand Dollar/Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.6067
The Canadian Dollar/Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.6890
Swiss Franc/Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.8133