|

EUR/USD remains pinned near one-month lows with the FOMC minutes on tap

  • The Euro depreciates for the third consecutive day, reaching levels near 1.1600.
  • The political impasse in France keeps the Euro under pressure.
  • The lack of progress to restore US government funding is starting to boost the Dollar on risk-averse flows.

EUR/USD keeps hovering right above one-month lows at 1.1605, weighed by investors' concerns about the fragile political and fiscal situation in France. The pair trades at 1.1635 at the time of writing, with investors awaiting the release of the minutes of the last Fed meeting along with a string of Federal Reserve (Fed) and European Central Bank (ECB) speakers, including President Christine Lagarde.

The Common currency had come under increasing pressure earlier on the day as pressure on French President Emmanuel Macron to call a snap election mounted amid growing criticism from his own ranks. Former allies have joined the demands of opposition parties to call elections or resign, and rating agencies have warned of a further downgrade of France's sovereign credit status if the political impasse drags on.

Across the Atlantic, the political scenario is not much better. US Senate Democratic and Republican leaders remain unable to find a way to restart funding as the shutdown enters its second week, and hopes of a breakthrough this week have fallen to 23% according to a poll by Polymarket. The lack of progress has started to erode market sentiment, boosting demand for the US Dollar and other traditional safe havens.

Euro Price Today

The table below shows the percentage change of Euro (EUR) against listed major currencies today. Euro was the strongest against the New Zealand Dollar.

USDEURGBPJPYCADAUDNZDCHF
USD0.30%0.10%0.30%0.03%0.27%0.67%0.38%
EUR-0.30%-0.19%0.04%-0.25%-0.05%0.42%0.08%
GBP-0.10%0.19%0.25%-0.04%0.18%0.61%0.29%
JPY-0.30%-0.04%-0.25%-0.32%-0.05%0.30%0.01%
CAD-0.03%0.25%0.04%0.32%0.22%0.64%0.33%
AUD-0.27%0.05%-0.18%0.05%-0.22%0.42%0.14%
NZD-0.67%-0.42%-0.61%-0.30%-0.64%-0.42%-0.30%
CHF-0.38%-0.08%-0.29%-0.01%-0.33%-0.14%0.30%

The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the Euro from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the US Dollar, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent EUR (base)/USD (quote).

Daily digest market movers: Political uncertainty hurts the Euro

  • The growing political uncertainty in France keeps bleeding the Euro this week, while investors' concerns about a prolonged shutdown of the US federal government have started to hurt market sentiment and boost demand for the safe-haven USD. In the absence of key macroeconomic data to alter this view, the bearish EUR/USD trend has further room to go.
  • On Wednesday, France's recently resigned Prime Minister, Sébastien Lecornu, assured that he is going to present a solution to President Macron later today and affirmed that "the dissolution of the parliament is becoming more remote". These comments have given some air to an ailing Euro, but the broader trend remains strongly bearish.
  • On Tuesday, ECB President Christine Lagarde reiterated that the disinflationary process in the Eurozone has been completed and that she is hopeful that France will meet its international commitments and produce a budget in time.
  • Eurozone data has failed to improve investors' sentiment. German Factory Orders figures showed a 0.8% decline in August, against market expectations of a 1.4% growth, following a 2.7% contraction in July. Year-on-year, orders have increased at a 1.5% rate, after a 3.3% fall in July.
  • Fed policymakers continue showing their divergences. Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari has warned about a burst of inflation if the bank lowers rates too fast, while US President Donald Trump's latest appointment, Fed Governor Stephen Miran, stated that inflation is due to population increases and reiterated that monetary policy needs to ease.

Technical Analysis: EUR/USD remains dangerously close to 1.1610 support

EUR/USD Chart

The EUR/USD technical picture reflects strong bearish pressure. The 4-hour chart Relative Strength Index (RSI) is low but not yet at oversold levels, and the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) remains well below the signal line, with red histogram bars increasing, suggesting that further depreciation is likely.

Bears are now testing support at the 1.1610 area, where the pair was contained the price on September 2 and 3. Further down, the target would be the August 22 and 27 lows, near 1.1575, and then the August 5 low at 1.1530, although this latter level seems out of reach for this Wednesday.

Upside attempts are likely to be challenged at the previous support area of 1.1645 (September 25 and October 6 lows), ahead of the descending trendline resistance, now around 1.1720. A break of this level would suggest a trend shift and bring last week's highs at the 1.1765-1.1775 area into focus.

Economic Indicator

ECB's President Lagarde speech

The European Central Bank's President Christine Lagarde, born in 1956 in France, has formerly served as Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, and minister of finance in France. She began her eight-year term at the helm of the ECB in November 2019. As part of her job in the Governing Council, Lagarde holds press conferences in detailing how the ECB observes the current and future state of the European economy. Her comments may positively or negatively the Euro's trend in the short term. Usually, a hawkish outlook boosts the Euro (bullish), while a dovish one weighs on the common currency (bearish).

Read more.

Next release: Wed Oct 08, 2025 16:00

Frequency: Irregular

Consensus: -

Previous: -

Source: European Central Bank

Economic Indicator

FOMC Minutes

FOMC stands for The Federal Open Market Committee that organizes 8 meetings in a year and reviews economic and financial conditions, determines the appropriate stance of monetary policy and assesses the risks to its long-run goals of price stability and sustainable economic growth. FOMC Minutes are released by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve and are a clear guide to the future US interest rate policy.

Read more.

Next release: Wed Oct 08, 2025 18:00

Frequency: Irregular

Consensus: -

Previous: -

Source: Federal Reserve

Minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) is usually published three weeks after the day of the policy decision. Investors look for clues regarding the policy outlook in this publication alongside the vote split. A bullish tone is likely to provide a boost to the greenback while a dovish stance is seen as USD-negative. It needs to be noted that the market reaction to FOMC Minutes could be delayed as news outlets don’t have access to the publication before the release, unlike the FOMC’s Policy Statement.

Author

Guillermo Alcala

Graduated in Communication Sciences at the Universidad del Pais Vasco and Universiteit van Amsterdam, Guillermo has been working as financial news editor and copywriter in diverse Forex-related firms, like FXStreet and Kantox.

More from Guillermo Alcala
Share:

Markets move fast. We move first.

Orange Juice Newsletter brings you expert driven insights - not headlines. Every day on your inbox.

By subscribing you agree to our Terms and conditions.

Editor's Picks

EUR/USD drops to daily lows near 1.1630

EUR/USD now loses some traction and slips back to the area of daily lows around 1.1630 on the back of a mild bounce in the US Dollar. Fresh US data, including the September PCE inflation numbers and the latest read on December consumer sentiment, didn’t really move the needle, so the pair is still on course to finish the week with a respectable gain.

GBP/USD trims gains, recedes toward 1.3320

GBP/USD is struggling to keep its daily advance, coming under fresh pressure and retreating to the 1.3320 zone following a mild bullish attempt in the Greenback. Even though US consumer sentiment surprised to the upside, the US Dollar isn’t getting much love, as traders are far more interested in what the Fed will say next week.

Gold makes a U-turn, back to $4,200

Gold is now losing the grip and receding to the key $4,200 region per troy ounce following some signs of life in the Greenback and a marked bounce in US Treasury yields across the board. The positive outlook for the precious metal, however, remains underpinned by steady bets for extra easing by the Fed.

Crypto Today: Bitcoin, Ethereum, XRP pare gains despite increasing hopes of upcoming Fed rate cut

Bitcoin is steadying above $91,000 at the time of writing on Friday. Ethereum remains above $3,100, reflecting positive sentiment ahead of the Federal Reserve's (Fed) monetary policy meeting on December 10.

Week ahead – Rate cut or market shock? The Fed decides

Fed rate cut widely expected; dot plot and overall meeting rhetoric also matter. Risk appetite is supported by Fed rate cut expectations; cryptos show signs of life. RBA, BoC and SNB also meet; chances of surprises are relatively low.

Ripple faces persistent bear risks, shrugging off ETF inflows

Ripple is extending its decline for the second consecutive day, trading at $2.06 at the time of writing on Friday. Sentiment surrounding the cross-border remittance token continues to lag despite steady inflows into XRP spot ETFs.