Ella 
In early Asian trading on Friday, EUR/USD closed slightly higher after falling back from its monthly high of 1.1139. As of press time, EUR/USD was trading at 1.1070, up 0.04% throughout the day.
Still, the ECB’s maintenance of a hawkish stance has provided some support for the euro (EUR) and acted as a “tailwind” for the EUR/USD pair. ECB policymakers hit back at market expectations and stressed that central bank policy decisions depend on economic data and are not affected by market pricing or time-limit pressures.
Unlike the European Central Bank, the Federal Reserve has struck a rather dovish tone, with traders expecting it to cut interest rates next year. Markets have priced in an 87% chance of a Fed rate cut in March, according to the CME FedWatch tool.
The number of people filing for unemployment benefits in the United States for the week ended December 23 was 218,000, compared with 206,000 last week, which was lower than the expected value of 210,000. U.S. pending home sales in November were flat at 0%, missing estimates of 1.0%.
Going into the final trading day of 2023, markets are likely to be quieter. Spain’s preliminary consumer price index (CPI) for December and the United States’ Chicago Purchasing Managers’ Index for December will be announced within the day.
