Pressure is mounting on the European Central Bank (ECB) to take action against a persistently strong euro with a leading industrialist calling on Frankfurt to tackle the "crazy" strength of the currency.
Fabrice Brégier, chief executive of Airbus's passenger jet business, said the ECB should intervene to push the value of the euro against the dollar down by 10 per cent from an "excessive" $1.35 to between $1.20 and $1.25.
" cannot be the only economic zone of the world that doesn't consider its currency as a weapon . . . as a key asset to promote its economy," he told the Financial Times in an interview. Mr Brégier's comments coincide with calls from the International Monetary Fund and politicians in some eurozone countries – France in particular – for the bank to consider a program of quantitative easing to tackle low inflation, sluggish economic growth and the strong euro.
Recommended Content
Editors’ Picks
EUR/USD retreats to 1.0750, eyes on Fedspeak
EUR/USD stays under modest bearish pressure and trades at around 1.0750 on Wednesday. Hawkish comments from Fed officials help the US Dollar stay resilient and don't allow the pair to stage a rebound.
GBP/USD struggles to hold above 1.2500 ahead of Thursday's BoE event
GBP/USD stays on the back foot and trades in negative territory below 1.2500 after losing nearly 0.5% on Tuesday. The renewed US Dollar strength on hawkish Fed comments weighs on the pair as market focus shifts to the BoE's policy announcements on Thursday.
Gold fluctuates in narrow range above $2,300
Gold struggles to make a decisive move in either direction and moves sideways in a narrow channel above $2,300. The benchmark 10-year US Treasury bond yield clings to modest gains near 4.5% and limits XAU/USD's upside.
SEC vs. Ripple lawsuit sees redacted filing go public, XRP dips to $0.51
Ripple (XRP) dipped to $0.51 low on Wednesday, erasing its gains from earlier this week. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing is now public, in its redacted version.
Softer growth, cooler inflation and rate cuts remain on the horizon
Economic growth in the US appears to be in solid shape. Although real GDP growth came in well below consensus expectations, the headline miss was mostly the result of larger-than-anticipated drags from trade and inventories.