|

EUR/USD Forecast: Defying 3 downers and rising, more gains to come?

  • EUR/USD is moving up nicely in the last full week of the year.
  • The pair defies three factors that should have brought it down.
  • The technical picture is improving for the pair.

EUR/USD is trading in the mid 1.1300s, up on the day. There are no reasons for the pair to rise, only to fall. When something cannot fall on bad news, it is a great sign of strength. It implies a significant upside potential when good news comes.

Why should the euro/dollar fall?

1) Weak data

The final euro-zone inflation figures for November disappointed with a surprise downgrade of the headline number from 2% to 1.9%. The currency bloc's trade balance surplus continues shrinking, with 12.5 billion in October against 14.2 billion expected and 13 billion in September.

2) Italy

The Italian government reached an agreement on a new budget with a lower deficit. But will it pass muster in Brussels? The European Commission did not immediately respond and will likely ask for more adjustments. Italy's economy shrank in Q3. With a smaller GDP, the EC will probably ask for another reduction in the deficit in order to sustain a lower debt-to-GDP ratio.

All in all, the problems are not resolved.

3) China and the US are clashing again

The US trade envoy had a lot of criticism against China. After a week in which the world's largest economies seemed to take steps to ease tensions, the clash around the talks to reform the WTO does not bode well.

And while stock futures turned lower, the greenback was not able to gain ground against the Euro. This is a bullish sign.

All in all, the pair is showing strength.

EUR/USD Technical Analysis

EUR/USD Technical Analysis December 17 2018

Momentum has turned positive for the pair, albeit only marginally. The turnaround is a bullish sign. The Relative Strength Index is not going anywhere.

1.1350 remain a battle line. It supported the pair in late November, and the 50 Simple Moving Average meets the price there. 1.1380 was a swing high in late November, and 1.1395 was a peak last week. Further above, 1.1430 and 1.1440 are notable. 

1.1330 was a swing low last week and a weak line of support. 1.1305 was a swing low twice in recent weeks, and 1.1270 is a double-bottom. 1.1215 follows: it was the low point of the year.

Author

Yohay Elam

Yohay Elam

FXStreet

Yohay is in Forex since 2008 when he founded Forex Crunch, a blog crafted in his free time that turned into a fully-fledged currency website later sold to Finixio.

More from Yohay Elam
Share:

Editor's Picks

EUR/USD challenges 1.1800, two-week lows

EUR/USD remains on the defensive, extending its leg lower to the vicinity of the 1.1800 region, or two-week lows, on Tuesday. The move lower comes as the US Dollar gathers further traction ahead of key US data releases, inclusing the FOMC Minutes, on Wednesday.

GBP/USD looks weaker near 1.3500

GBP/USD adds to Monday’s pessimism and puts the 1.3500 support to the test on Tuesday. Cable’s marked pullback comes in response to extra gains in the Greenback while disappointing UK jobs data also collaborate with the offered bias around the British Pound.

Gold loses further momentum, approaches $4,800

Gold recedes to fresh two-week troughs around the $4,800 region per troy ounce on Tuesday. The precious metal builds on Monday’s downtick following a marked rebound in the US Dollar and mixed US Treasury yields across the board.

Crypto Today: Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP upside looks limited amid deteriorating retail demand

The cryptocurrency market extends weakness with major coins including Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH) and Ripple (XRP) trading in sideways price action at the time of writing on Tuesday.

UK jobs market weakens, bolstering rate cut hopes

In the UK, the latest jobs report made for difficult reading. Nonetheless, this represents yet another reminder for the Bank of England that they need to act swiftly given the collapse in inflation expected over the coming months. 

Ripple slides to $1.45 as downside risks surge

Ripple edges lower at the time of writing on Tuesday, from the daily open of $1.48, as headwinds persist across the crypto market. A short-term support is emerging at $1.45, but a buildup of bearish positions could further weaken the derivatives market and prolong the correction.