The Euro firmed against the Pound and US Dollar and is on track to make a third monthly gain against the Japanese Yen due to the release of inflation data which increased speculation that the European Central will refrain from introducing more stimulus measures.
Sterling softened after data showed that the amount of net lending to individuals increased less than forecast in October. Lending increased by £1.7 billion, below the expected £2.1 billion rise. The number of new mortgage approvals also came in under expectations.
According to the European Union Statistics Office, consumer prices across the Eurozone increased by 0.9% from the previous year. The figure beat economist forecasts for a rise to 0.8%. The data also showed that core inflation climbed to 1.0%, above the target of 0.86%.
Also supporting the single currency was the data which showed that unemployment in the Euro region fell for the first time in four years. The Luxembourg based Statistics agency said that the jobless rate made an unexpected fall to 12.1% in October from the record high level of 12.2% in the previous month. The jobless data sparked some confidence that the seemingly stalling recovery is starting to show some of its impacts.
“The economy is still too weak to bring fundamental change to the unemployment rate,” said an economist at Intesa Sanpaolo SpA in Milan. “Growth needs to pick up and we need to see structural reforms in a number of countries to achieve significant improvement.”
The data whilst positive highlighted the huge challenge faced across the region as well as the disparity between member states. While just 5% of Austrians are unemployed, 27% of Greeks and Spaniards are without a job. In total, 19 million people are still out of work.
Current Euro (EUR) Exchange Rates
The Euro/US Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.3607
The Euro/Pound Sterling Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.8332
The Euro/Australian Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.4955
The Euro/ New Zealand Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.6755
The US Dollar/Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.7349
The Pound Sterling /Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.2001
The Australian Dollar/Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.6686
The New Zealand Dollar/Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.5968
(Correct as of 11:15 am GMT)
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