The euro today fell to new lows against the US dollar following the release of disappointing PMI data from across the euro area by Markit Economics. The EUR/USD currency pair crashed as traders reacted to the PMI prints that were lower than expected, reflecting the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The EUR/USD currency pair today fell from a high of 1.0835 in the late Asian session to a low of 1.0776 after the PMI releases and was heading lower at the time of writing.
The currency pair traded sideways at the start of today’s session before spiking to its daily highly then falling in the early European session. The release of the disappointing German GfK consumer confidence survey for May triggered the pair’s initial decline. The survey data came in at -23.4 versus the expected 11.8 print causing the decline. The release of the Markit flash Germany Manufacturing PMI for April, which came in at 34.4 against consensus estimates of 39 drove the pair lower. The Markit Germany flash Services PMI also missed expectations. The Markit Eurozone Manufacturing and Services PMI released shortly afterwards also missed analysts’ expectations, thus extending the pair’s losses.
The rising coronavirus cases in European countries such as Spain also contributed to the bearish sentiment surrounding the single currency. The weak French flash Manufacturing and Services PMIs released by IHS Markit also dragged the pair lower.
The currency pair’s short-term performance is likely to be affected by the outcome of the Eurogroup meeting and geopolitical events.
The EUR/USD currency pair was trading at 1.0755 as at 10:42 GMT having fallen from a high of 1.0835. The EUR/JPY currency pair was trading at 115.77 having dropped from a high of 116.83.
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Euro Falls to Fresh Monthly Lows on Negative Euro Area PMIs
