German economic data has provided a bit of a boost to the euro today, but the gains are more modest than many might expect. Even though the macroeconomic picture appears to be getting better in Germany, it’s not quite enough to overcome the other problems in the eurozone.
German economic sentiment improved, according to the latest ZEW survey of investors. The news has been helping European shares, and provided a small boost to the euro. Sentiment was better than expected, and the macroeconomic implications have been on the positive side. Also providing a little help for the euro is the fact that the latest Spanish bond auction saw reasonable demand.
However, there are still some issues facing the eurozone. Concerns about upcoming Italian elections (and the possibility of a hung parliament), as well as worries about peripheral countries in the eurozone, are holding the euro back.
Even though the euro is a little bit higher against its counterparts, it’s not as high as it could be. There is still some concern about the 17-nation currency, and that is limiting its gains.
At 15:42 GMT EUR/USD is up to 1.3365 from the open at 1.3351. EUR/GBP is up to 0.8638 from the open at 0.8630. EUR/JPY is a little lower, at 125.0865, down from the open at 125.4400.
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