- EUR/USD holds positive ground near the 1.1000 barrier amid the USD weakness.
- The European Central Bank (ECB) maintained the current key interest rates unchanged on Thursday.
- US Retail Sales came in better than expected, climbing 0.3% in November from a 0.2% drop in October.
- Investors await the preliminary Eurozone HCOB PMI and US S&P Global PMI reports.
The EUR/USD pair gains momentum near the 1.1000 mark during the early Asian session on Friday. As widely expected, the European Central Bank (ECB) held the rate unchanged on Thursday. In response to the ECB's decision, the Euro (EUR) attracted some buyers and lifted the EUR/USD pair. The pair currently trades around 1.0993, up 0.01% on the day.
The ECB decided to maintain the current key interest rates, with no changes to the main refinancing operations at 4.50%, the marginal lending facility at 4.75%, and the deposit facility at 4.00%, as widely expected. The central bank pushed back against bets on rate cuts on Thursday, highlighting that borrowing costs would remain at record highs despite lower inflation expectations and price pressure.
On the other hand, the US Federal Reserve held its benchmark fed funds rate range steady at 5.25%–5.50% on Wednesday. However, dovish remarks from Fed Chairman Jerome Powell and Fed officials’ projections about three rate cuts next year, dragged the Greenback lower across the board.
On Thursday, US Retail Sales came in better than market expectations, growing 0.3% in November from a 0.2% drop in the previous reading. Additionally, the Initial Jobless Claims in the week ending December 9 arrived at 202,000 versus the previous week's print of 221,000, above the market consensus of 220,000. Continuing Claims rose by 20,000 to 1.876 million in the week ended December 2. The upbeat US data failed to lift the Greenback as investors digest the outcome of the Fed monetary policy meeting and the anticipation of the rate cut next year.
Moving on, market participants will focus on the preliminary HCOB PMI report from France, Germany, and the Eurozone. The Eurozone HCOB Composite PMI preliminary reading is expected to show an increase from 47.6 to 48.0. On the US docket, the US S&P Global PMI, Industrial Production, and NY Empire State Manufacturing Index will be due later on Friday.
(This story was corrected on December 15 at 00:42 GMT to say that market participants will focus on the preliminary HCOB PMI report, not the HICP report)
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