The euro continued its early fall against its most major rivals in European deals on Thursday, after the European Central Bank held its key interest rates unchanged at a record low for an eighth session in a row.
The Governing Council, led by ECB President Mario Draghi, held the refinancing rate at a record low 0.05 percent, following its meeting in Frankfurt. The decision was in line with economists' expectations.
The bank also held the deposit rate unchanged at -0.20 percent and the marginal lending rate at 0.30 percent. The three main interest rates were lowered by 10 basis points in September last year.
Traders await the ECB chief Mario Draghi's press conference at 8.30 am ET, when he will address about the ECB plans to boost its emergency funding for Greek banks, which would allow them to reopen.
The central bank chief is also likely to tackle difficult questions on the tough austerity proposed for Greece and the future of the euro area.
Early in the day, Greece Parliament overwhelmingly approved austerity measures demanded by EU creditors, clearing hurdle to secure three-year financing deal that aims to avert a "Grexit."
In a passionate speech just before the vote, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras urged MPs to back the measures, saying he was supporting the package against his will to avoid financial collapse as banks remain shut since June 29.
In other economic news, final data from Eurostat showed that Eurozone inflation slowed as estimated in June largely due to a fall in energy prices.
Inflation eased to 0.2 percent in June from 0.3 percent in May. It came in line with the flash estimate released on June 30.
The euro was trading in a negative territory in Asian deals.
In European deals, the single currency declined to a 6-day low of 134.85 against the yen, down from a high of 135.87 hit at 7:00 pm ET. The euro is likely to find support around the 134.00 mark. The pair was worth 135.46 at yesterday's close.
The 19-nation currency depreciated to 1.0864 against the greenback, a level not seen since May 27. Continuation of the euro's downtrend may take it to a support surrounding the 1.08 area. At Wednesday's close, the pair was trading at 1.0940.
The euro pared gains to 1.0405 against the franc, off its previous high of 1.0438. If the euro continues its downtrend, 1.03 is seen as its next support level.
The provisional results from the Federal Statistical Office showed that Switzerland's retail sales turnover declined in May.
Real turnover declined 1.8 percent in May from last year, following a 0.1 percent drop in April. This was the fifth straight month of decline. Excluding fuel, retail sales slid 1.6 percent annually, in contrast to April's 0.4 percent increase.
The euro held steady against the pound, following a decline to 7-1/2-year decline to 0.6968 in European morning deals. The pair was trading at 0.6995 when it ended Wednesday's trading.
Looking ahead, U.S. weekly jobless claims for the week ended July 11 and U.S. NAHB housing market index for July are slated for release shortly.
At 10:00 am ET, Yellen will testify on the Semiannual Monetary Policy Report before the Senate Banking Committee in Washington DC.
At 2:00 pm ET, Bank of England Governor Mark Carney is expected to speak at the Resolution Foundation, in Lincoln, England.
