The euro gained ground against both sterling and the US dollar on Monday as it moved back to one-month highs against sterling. The single currency was boosted by an increase in German bund yields, moving back up to last week’s nine-month highs.
As has been the case in the last couple of months the general sentiment on the single currency remains fragile as a standoff between Greece and its lenders continues. Earlier on Monday German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned that ‘there isn’t much time left’ to finalise a deal. This came after Greece raised the stakes on Friday when it missed a key debt payment to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and said it would pay off the interest along with other payments by the end of June.
This morning at 10am we see Eurozone growth data released. This figure is forecast to improve slightly from 0.9% to 1%. Any deviations from expectations could have a strong impact on the single-nation currency.