Euro is lower today, falling as economic news weighs on the 17-nation currency. The Center for Economic and Policy Research is reporting that the eurozone has been in recession since the third quarter of 2011. That news is weighing on the euro today, as is the fact that there appears to be no progress with Greece.
After recognizing continued contraction in the eurozone economy, Forex trader focus is now on Greece. International leaders continue to disagree over the best way to make the embattled country’s debt sustainable. One the one hand are those who favor another bailout payment. On the other, are those who want to see another debt writedown.
The fact that the Greek parliament recently approved an austerity package isn’t doing much to sway leaders, since the new package recognizes the reality that Greece will not be able to meet its original deadline. Concerns remain, too, that similar problems will arise in Spain and Portugal, although so far those countries have managed to stave off the worst of debt problems.
For now, there is just too much uncertainty, and too much struggle in the eurozone for the euro to gain the upper hand.
At 14:10 GMT EUR/USD is down to 1.2740 from the open at 1.2781. EUR/GBP is down to 0.8024 from the open at 0.8055. EUR/JPY is down to 103.4650 from the open at 103.7405.
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