The euro today fell against the US dollar in the American session following the release of upbeat US retail sales data. The EUR/USD currency pair fell from its daily highs giving up all the gains made earlier in the session as the Dollar Index soared.
The EUR/USD currency pair today fell from a high of 1.1173 in the mid-European session to a low of 1.1128 in the American session and was near these lows at the time of writing.
The currency pair fell during the Asian session as investors took profits following yesterday’s rally. The pair rallied higher in the early European session following the release of the in-line German consumer price index data for December. According to the Federal Statistical Office, German monthly inflation came in at 0.5%, which translated into an annualised 1.5%; both prints met expectations boosting the single currency. The release of the European Central Bank‘s minutes of its latest monetary policy meeting also helped steer the pair higher. However, the report contained no surprises as it reiterated the ECB’s wait-and-see attitude and the planned strategic review of its monetary policies.
The release of the upbeat US retail sales report for December by the Census Bureau triggered the pair’s crash. The control group retail sales came in at 0.5% beating expectations by 0.1%, while core retail sales were 0.7% versus the expected 0.5% print. The upbeat Philadelphia Fed manufacturing survey for January also contributed to the pair’s woes.
The currency pair’s future performance is likely to be affected by tomorrow’s multiple eurozone and US releases.
The EUR/USD currency pair was trading at 1.1134 as at 19:37 GMT having fallen from a high of 1.1173. The EUR/JPY currency pair was trading at 122.63 having dropped from a high of 122.87.
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