- EUR/USD struggles to sustain above 1.0950 as the US Dollar performs strongly ahead of the FOMC Minutes.
- Traders have priced out Fed large rate cut bets for November.
- The ECB is expected to reduce interest rates by 50 bps in the last quarter of the year.
EUR/USD walks on a thin rope near the eight-week low of 1.0950 in Wednesday’s New York session. The major currency pair remains under pressure as the US Dollar (USD) extends its previous week’s rally further, with the US Dollar Index (DXY) rising above the seven-week high of 102.70.
The Greenback has strengthened as traders have priced out expectations for the Federal Reserve (Fed) to reduce interest rates again by 50 basis points (bps) in November. Traders were forced to unwind Fed large rate cut bets as the upbeat United States (US) Nonfarm Payrolls (NFP) report for September diminished downside risks to economic growth and consumer spending. Also, dismal market sentiment due to Middle East tensions has improved the Greenback’s appeal as a safe haven.
Financial market participants expect the Fed to cut interest rates by 25 bps in the remaining two policy meetings this year at the time of writing, according to the CME FedWatch tool.
In Wednesday’s session, investors will pay close attention to the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) Minutes of the September meeting, which will be released at 18:00 GMT. The FOMC Minutes will convey the views of all officials on the interest rate and the economic outlook. In the September meeting, all members unanimously voted to start the policy-easing cycle with a 50-bps rate cut, except Fed Governor Michelle Bowman who favored a smaller reduction of 25 bps.
Going forward, the major trigger for the US Dollar will be the US Consumer Price Index (CPI) and the Producer Price Index (PPI) data for September, which will be published on Thursday and Friday, respectively.
US Dollar PRICE Today
The table below shows the percentage change of US Dollar (USD) against listed major currencies today. US Dollar was the strongest against the New Zealand Dollar.
| USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USD | 0.25% | 0.16% | 0.45% | 0.22% | 0.26% | 1.11% | 0.17% | |
| EUR | -0.25% | -0.09% | 0.18% | -0.04% | 0.06% | 0.82% | -0.08% | |
| GBP | -0.16% | 0.09% | 0.27% | 0.08% | 0.15% | 0.92% | 0.00% | |
| JPY | -0.45% | -0.18% | -0.27% | -0.21% | -0.16% | 0.65% | -0.29% | |
| CAD | -0.22% | 0.04% | -0.08% | 0.21% | 0.04% | 0.86% | -0.06% | |
| AUD | -0.26% | -0.06% | -0.15% | 0.16% | -0.04% | 0.79% | -0.13% | |
| NZD | -1.11% | -0.82% | -0.92% | -0.65% | -0.86% | -0.79% | -0.92% | |
| CHF | -0.17% | 0.08% | -0.01% | 0.29% | 0.06% | 0.13% | 0.92% |
The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the US Dollar from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the Japanese Yen, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent USD (base)/JPY (quote).
Daily digest market movers: EUR/USD remains vulnerable amid weak Euro
- The Euro (EUR) faces selling pressure as traders have priced in more rate cuts by the European Central Bank (ECB). The ECB is expected to cut its Deposit Facility Rate further by 50 bps to 3% by the year-end, suggesting that there will be a rate cut of 25 bps in each of the two policy meetings scheduled for next week and in December.
- The ECB has already reduced its key borrowing rates by 50 bps this year as officials have remained confident that inflation will return to the bank’s target of 2% in 2025. Market expectations for the ECB to cut interest rates further have been prompted by the declining trend in price pressures and the economic vulnerability in the Eurozone.
- ECB policymaker and Governor of the Greek Central Bank Yannis Stournaras has also backed two more rate cuts in each of the remaining meetings this year and emphasized the need to reduce them further in 2025 as inflation continues to decelerate, in his comments in an interview with Financial Times published on Wednesday. His comments also indicated that price pressures are declining faster than what the ECB forecasted in September.
- Also, ECB policymaker Martins Kazaks supported an interest rate cut in October in his comments on Tuesday. ECB Kazaks emphasized the need of rate cuts as the economy is weak.
Technical Analysis: EUR/USD seems to decline further below 1.0950
EUR/USD struggles to hold the immediate support of 1.0950. The major currency pair stays on the backfoot as it has delivered a breakdown of the Double Top chart pattern formation on a daily timeframe. The above-mentioned chart pattern was triggered after the shared currency pair broke below the September 11 low of 1.1000.
The 14-day Relative Strength Index (RSI) settles inside the bearish range of 20.00-40.00, suggesting more weakness ahead for EUR/USD.
Looking down, the pair is expected to find support near the 200-day EMA around 1.0900. On the upside, the 20-day EMA at 1.1090 and the September high around 1.1200 will be major resistance zones.
Fed FAQs
Monetary policy in the US is shaped by the Federal Reserve (Fed). The Fed has two mandates: to achieve price stability and foster full employment. Its primary tool to achieve these goals is by adjusting interest rates. When prices are rising too quickly and inflation is above the Fed’s 2% target, it raises interest rates, increasing borrowing costs throughout the economy. This results in a stronger US Dollar (USD) as it makes the US a more attractive place for international investors to park their money. When inflation falls below 2% or the Unemployment Rate is too high, the Fed may lower interest rates to encourage borrowing, which weighs on the Greenback.
The Federal Reserve (Fed) holds eight policy meetings a year, where the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) assesses economic conditions and makes monetary policy decisions. The FOMC is attended by twelve Fed officials – the seven members of the Board of Governors, the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, and four of the remaining eleven regional Reserve Bank presidents, who serve one-year terms on a rotating basis.
In extreme situations, the Federal Reserve may resort to a policy named Quantitative Easing (QE). QE is the process by which the Fed substantially increases the flow of credit in a stuck financial system. It is a non-standard policy measure used during crises or when inflation is extremely low. It was the Fed’s weapon of choice during the Great Financial Crisis in 2008. It involves the Fed printing more Dollars and using them to buy high grade bonds from financial institutions. QE usually weakens the US Dollar.
Quantitative tightening (QT) is the reverse process of QE, whereby the Federal Reserve stops buying bonds from financial institutions and does not reinvest the principal from the bonds it holds maturing, to purchase new bonds. It is usually positive for the value of the US Dollar.
