EURUSD Movement
For the 24 hours to 23:00 GMT, EUR rose 0.67% against the USD and closed at 1.3156, after Italy saw its borrowing costs rise less than had been feared. Moreover, upbeat European economic data also helped buoy the single currency.
Yesterday, Italy sold €4 billion worth of ten-year debt at an average yield of 4.83%, up from 4.17% at a similar auction last month and €2.5 billion of five-year government bonds at an average yield of 3.59%, up from 2.94% in January. Markets had feared that yields could rise above 5%.
In the Euro-zone, the economic sentiment index rose to a reading of at 91.1 in February, while the industry confidence index improved to a reading of -11.2 for the same month. Also services confidence index and business climate indicator rose in February. Moreover, the M3 money supply advanced 3.5% (YoY) in January, slightly faster than the 3.4% rise recorded in the previous month.
Separately, Germany’s consumer confidence index rose to a reading of 5.9 in March, in line with market expectations and from 5.8 in February. Also, consumer confidence in France stood unchanged at 86.0 in February, in line with market expectations.
Further adding to positive tone, US pending home sales rose 4.5% to a reading of 105.9 in January, marking the highest level since 2010. However, durable goods orders in the US dropped 5.2% in January, compared to an upwardly revised 3.7% growth in December.
Additionally, yesterday late night, the President of the European Central Bank (ECB), Mario Draghi, stated that the central bank has no intention of tightening the monetary policy deployed to help the ailing Euro-zone economy. He also indicated that the financial markets in Euro-zone are still not functioning well.
In the Asian session, at GMT0400, the pair is trading at 1.3141, with the EUR trading 0.11% lower from yesterday’s close.
The pair is expected to find support at 1.3074, and a fall through could take it to the next support level of 1.3007. The pair is expected to find its first resistance at 1.3185, and a rise through could take it to the next resistance level of 1.3229.
In the Euro-zone, the consumer price index (CPI) scheduled for release later in the day, would generate market interest. Traders foresee a drop in January CPI data. Meanwhile, Germany’s unemployment change and the CPI data are expected to record a drop in February. In the US, the GDP and initial jobless claims data are awaited.
The currency pair is trading above its 20 Hr and 50 Hr moving averages.
