he Euro came under further pressure today on the back of renewed US dollar strength and political instability surrounding the possibility of an upset in the upcoming French elections and Dutch elections.
At 7.43pm (GMT) the European currency was trading at $1.6393 down from $1.7048 in yesterday’s trading.
Although the US dollar has come under pressure recently it’s currently making a comeback against the Euro which started on Monday with comments from Philadelphia Fed President Patrick Harper on the question of interest rate rises who noted, “I think March is on the table. I would never take a meeting off the table,”
Win Thin, global head of emerging-market currency strategy at Brown Brothers Harriman noted that US President Donald Trump’s rhetoric had also affected the greenback but looking at the big picture the US economy is in good shape,
“The dollar had been correcting since the Fed raised rates in mid-December, mostly because Trump has took his focus off the fiscal policies,” he said
“But the underlying economic growth still there, as evidenced by the strong jobs report last Friday and solid PMI data. The dollar may have resumed its trend higher,” he added.
The Euro is expected to face a big test in the coming months, as a fresh round of elections hits the Eurozone starting with the Netherlands, who will hold a general election in March, followed by the French electorate in April.
Both of these candidates are seeking to build on the anti-immigration sentiment that is sweeping Europe, and an upset victory in both countries is not out of the question.
Presidential candidate Mari Le Pen will take France out of the European Union if she wins, her chief economic adviser said.