Eurozone HCOB Composite PMI falls to 48.1 in November vs. 50 expected

Business activity in the Eurozone private sector contracted in early November.
EUR/USD trades at its weakest level in nearly two years below 1.0450.

Eren Sengezer FXStreet

Business activity in the Eurozone private sector contracted in early November, with the preliminary HCOB Composite Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) falling to 48.1 from 50 in October. This reading came in below the market expectation of 50.

In the same period, the HCOB Manufacturing PMI edged lower to 45.2 from 46, while the Services PMI dropped into the contraction territory at 49.2 from 51.6.

Assessing the report's findings, "the Eurozone's manufacturing sector is sinking deeper into recession, and now the services sector is starting to struggle after two months of marginal growth," noted Dr. Cyrus de la Rubia, Chief Economist at Hamburg Commercial Bank. "It is no surprise really, given the political mess in the biggest Eurozone economies lately – France's government is on shaky ground, and Germany's heading for early elections. Throw in the election of Donald Trump as US president, and it is no wonder the economy is facing challenges. Businesses are just navigating by sight."

Market reaction

The Euro came under renewed selling pressure after this report. At the time of press, EUR/USD was trading at its weakest level in nearly two years below 1.0450.

Author

Eren Sengezer

FXStreet

As an economist at heart, Eren Sengezer specializes in the assessment of the short-term and long-term impacts of macroeconomic data, central bank policies and political developments on financial assets.

EUR/USD clings to gains around 1.1800

EUR/USD manages to regain composure and retests the 1.1800 region in quite a positive start to the week. The pair’s bounce follows the US Dollar’s offered stance post-SCOTUS ruling ahead of important US data and Fedspeak on Tuesday.

GBP/USD looks stuck around 1.3500 amid firm gains

GBP/USD is pushing further north on Monday, revisiting the 1.3500 hurdle and beyond. Cable’s uptick is largely being fuelled by the broader softness in the Greenback, amid lingering uncertainty around tariffs.

Gold pops above $5,200, four-week highs

Gold is holding onto its bullish tone on Monday, reaching new multi-week highs just past the $5,200 mark per troy ounce. Fresh trade-war concerns, coupled with rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, are keeping demand for the yellow metal well on the rise.

Ethereum Price Forecast: BitMine's holdings reach 4.42 million ETH as Fundstrat predicts 87% win-ratio

Ethereum (ETH) treasury firm BitMine Immersion Technologies (BMNR) scooped up 51,162 ETH last week, marking its largest purchase since December.

Supreme Court nixes tariffs, Trump teases 15% global tariff

On February 20th, the Supreme Court ruled that Trump’s global tariffs under IEEPA authority were unconstitutional, effectively nullifying the framework. However, the relief was short-lived. Within hours, Trump floated a 15% blanket tariff under an alternative legal authority.

XRP recovers slightly as bearish sentiment dominates crypto market

Ripple is rising above $1.40 at the time of writing on Monday amid fresh tariff-triggered headwinds in the broader cryptocurrency market. The sell-off to $1.33, the token’s intraday low, can be attributed to macroeconomic uncertainty, geopolitical tensions and risk-averse sentiment among other factors.