020 7898 0500The euro had a quiet end to a mixed week on Friday. In the morning, it continued its trend of the week against the US dollar by weakening against the US currency, but the majority of these losses were erased in the afternoon session. The sentiment on the single currency remained unchanged after the minutes of the European Central Bank (ECB)’s January meeting – which was released on Thursday – had showed signs that the central bank is prepared to increase monetary easing next month if necessary to bolster growth. The only significant data was in the form of consumer confidence figures, which came out much worse than expected at -8.8, despite being forecast at -6.7.
This week is expected to be a busier week for the single currency. The main releases will be Germany growth data on Tuesday, which is to remain at 0.3% for last quarter. On Thursday the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for the Eurozone is out and expected to increase slightly from last year’s figure from 0.2 up to 0.4%. Given that the CPI is a measure of inflation, Euro investors will be keeping a particularly close eye on this data set, as inflation is currently a global concern.
