RTTN:Euro Strengthens Against Most Majors After French, Spanish Bond Auctions
(RTTNews) - The euro firmed up against most of its major rivals in early deals on Thursday as European equities are trading higher after reports said yields fell amid firm demand at the first auction of French bonds.
Also, Spain successfully raised EUR 6.61 billion from the sale of its bonds maturing in 2016, 2019 and 2022 today, far exceeding the maximum target set for the auction.
Meanwhile, the Eurozone economic outlook remains subject to high uncertainty and substantial downside risks, the European Central Bank said in its monthly bulletin.
"There are tentative signs of a stabilization in activity at low levels," the editorial said while reiterating that anchoring inflation is a prerequisite for monetary policy to make its contribution towards supporting economic growth and job creation.
Separately, ECB President Mario Draghi said at an event in Abu Dhabi that it is important to swiftly implement all those decisions made at the December summit to put the euro area economy back on course.
Further, Fitch Ratings is likely to lower ratings of six Eurozone nations that are currently under review, by one or two notches, by the end of this month, reports said citing comments made by Managing Director Edward Parker in separate events in Europe.
The agency has placed Spain, Italy, Ireland, Cyprus, Belgium and Slovenia on review in December for possible downgrades. Parker said the review would be concluded by the end of January.
Thus far, Germany's DAX advanced 0.20 percent, the U.K. FTSE 100 index climbed 0.16 percent and France's CAC-40 index jumped to 0.80 percent.
Extending its 2-day winning streak, the euro advanced to 2-week highs of 1.2914 against the dollar and 99.13 against the yen around 6:15 am ET. On the upside, the common currency may find target levels at 1.2950 against the greenback and 99.30 versus the yen.
Against the pound, the single currency climbed to a 6-day high of 0.8365 around 6:05 am ET. The euro-pound pair is presently worth 0.8360 with 0.8380 seen as the next likely resistance level in the near-term.
British consumer confidence declined in December due to continued pessimism regarding the economy's prospects this year, a survey by Nationwide Building Society revealed. The consumer confidence index fell to 38 in December from 40 in November, marking the second lowest score in the survey history.
The euro tested yesterday's low of 1.2071 against the Swiss franc and the pair was unable to make any significant headway. The euro-franc pair traded in a broad range of 1.2095 and 1.2075 and is presently worth near Wednesday's close of 1.2085.
(RTTNews) - Looking ahead, the U.S. CPI, housing starts and building permits - all for December, weekly jobless claims for the week ended January 14 and the results of the Philadelphia Federal Reserve's manufacturing survey for January are slated for release in the New York morning session.
