EUR/USD clings to mild losses below 1.1040 as markets enter holiday mode

EUR/USD trades with mild losses near 1.1037 amid light trading.
The Federal Reserve’s favored inflation gauge, the Core PCE, grew 3.2% YoY, below the 3.3% expected.
ECB’s Lagarde clarified that the ECB's policy decisions are data-dependent and not influenced by market pricing or time-bound pressures.

The EUR/USD pair trades near the highest level since August around 1.1040 during the early Asian trading hours on Wednesday. No top-tier economic data will be released this week, and the US Dollar (USD) is likely to remain under pressure due to the lack of any major data that might slow the downward momentum. EUR/USD currently trades around 1.1037, losing 0.04% on the day,

The Federal Reserve’s favored inflation gauge, the Core Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index (PCE), which excludes energy and food prices, grew 3.2% YoY, below the forecast 3.3%. On a monthly basis, the Core PCE rose 0.1%, below the consensus of 0.2%. The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) decided to keep the interest rate steady at its recent December meeting and signaled that three rate cuts could come in 2024.

On the Euro front, the European Central Bank (ECB) left its benchmark interest rates unchanged at its last meeting of the year. ECB President Christine Lagarde clarified that the ECB's policy decisions are data-dependent and not influenced by market pricing or time-bound pressures.

ECB Vice President Luis de Guindos said that it’s premature to start easing monetary policy while adding that the central bank does not foresee a technical recession in the Eurozone. That being said, the more hawkish remarks from the ECB might lift the Euro (EUR) and cap the downside of the EUR/USD pair.

The US Richmond Fed Manufacturing Index for December will be due on Wednesday, and the Initial Jobless Claims will be released on Thursday. In the absence of top-tier US economic data from the Eurozone and the United States, risk sentiment is likely to remain the key driver behind the EUR/USD price action.