During early trading in Asia on Wednesday, the EUR/USD exchange rate fell modestly and continued to encounter resistance at the 1.1000 psychological mark. The outlook for EUR/USD is bullish amid weakness in the US dollar (USD). EUR/USD is currently trading around 1.097, with an intraday decline of 0.07%.
Eurozone inflation fell short of market expectations in November as energy prices fell, data from Eurostat showed on Tuesday. The Eurozone’s Harmonized Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) fell to -0.6% in November from -0.5% in the previous month, which was lower than expected. Eurozone inflation came in at an annual rate of 2.4%, in line with analysts’ expectations. The core consumer price index, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, was at an annualized rate of 3.6%, the lowest since April 2022.
The European Central Bank said after its latest monetary policy meeting that the central bank was not discussing a rate cut at all, while warning that inflation could surge again in December as cooler weather boosts energy demand and prices. This could therefore limit the upside for the euro (EUR) and be bearish for EUR/USD.
U.S. building permits fell to 1.46 million in November from 1.498 million in October, below expectations of 1.47 million. Data released by the U.S. Census Bureau on Tuesday showed that housing starts rose to 1.56 million units in November from the previous reading of 1.359 million units and above expectations of 1.36 million units.
Later on Wednesday, traders will focus on German producer price index (PPI) for November, euro zone current account for October, construction output and consumer confidence for December. In the United States, existing home sales data will be released.