EUR/USD – Euro Slightly Lower, Eurozone Unemployment Rate Steady

The euro is flat on Monday, as EUR/USD is trading at 1.1370 in the European session. On the release front, Eurozone Unemployment Rate remained at 10.3%, matching the forecast. Spanish Unemployment Change was excellent, posting a sharp decline of 58.2 thousand. This was the indicator’s strongest reading in seven months. Eurozone Sentix Investor Confidence improved slightly to 5.7 points, but this was well short of the estimate of 6.9 points. In the US, it’s a quiet start to the week, with no major releases on the schedule.

The US labor market remains robust, as underscored by Friday’s employment numbers. Nonfarm Payrolls came in at 215 thousand, above the estimate of 205 thousand. The unemployment rate edged up to 5.0%. However, wage growth remains weak, as Average Hourly Earnings posted a small gain of 0.3%, close to the estimate of 0.2%.

The US dollar suffered its worst week in two months, as EUR/USD surged some 230 points. The euro took full advantage of Janet Yellen’s very dovish comments last week at a speech in New York. Yellen warned of risks to the US economy from uncertainty in the global markets and the slowdown in China, and poured cold water on speculation of an April rate hike. With the US economy in good shape, why did Yellen sound ultra-dovish in her comments? Yellen was likely reacting to comments by several Fed members prior to her speech, which were very hawkish in tone, some going as far as calling for a rate hike this month. The contradictory messages coming out of Fed points to a split in the FOMC concerning monetary policy, although Yellen is likely to have the last word. Mixed messages out of the Fed creates uncertainty that the markets could do without, so analysts will be paying close attention to the Fed minutes on Wednesday, looking for clues as to further rate projections. Traders should be prepared for some volatility after the release of the minutes.

EUR/USD Fundamentals

Monday (April 4)

  • 7:00 Spanish Employment Change. Estimate +21.3K. Actual -58.2K
  • 8:30 Eurozone Sentix Investor Confidence. Estimate 6.9 points. Actual 5.7 points
  • 9:00 Eurozone Unemployment Rate. Estimate 10.3%. Actual 10.3%
  • 9:00 Eurozone PPI. Actual -0.5%. Actual -0.7%
  • 10:00 US Factory Orders. Estimate -1.5%
  • 10:00 US Labor Market Conditions Index

Upcoming Key Events

Tuesday (April 5)

  • 10:00 US ISM Non-Manufacturing PMI. Estimate 54.1 points

*Key events are in bold

*All release times are GMT

EUR/USD for Monday, April 4, 2016

EUR/USD April 4 at 9:20 GMT

Open: 1.1395 Low: 1.1362 High: 1.1413 Close: 1.1365

EUR/USD Technical

S1 S2 S1 R1 R2 R3
1.1087 1.1172 1.1278 1.1378 1.1495 1.1609
  • EUR/USD was flat in the Asian session and has posted slight losses in the European session
  • 1.1378 has switched to a resistance role following losses by EUR/USD on Monday. It is a weak line
  • 1.1278 is providing support

Further levels in both directions:

  • Below: 1.1278, 1.1172 and 1.1087
  • Above: 1.1378, 1.1495, 1.1609 and 1.1712
  • Current range: 1.1278 to 1.1378

OANDA’s Open Positions Ratio

EUR/USD ratio has shown movement towards short positions, which have a strong majority (69%). This is indicative of strong trader bias towards EUR/USD continuing to drop to lower levels.

This article is for general information purposes only. It is not investment advice or a solution to buy or sell securities. Opinions are the authors; not necessarily that of OANDA Corporation or any of its affiliates, subsidiaries, officers or directors. Leveraged trading is high risk and not suitable for all. You could lose all of your deposited funds.

Kenny Fisher

Kenny Fisher

Market Analyst at OANDA
A highly experienced financial market analyst with a focus on fundamental analysis, Kenneth Fisher’s daily commentary covers a broad range of markets including forex, equities and commodities. His work has been published in several major online financial publications including Investing.com, Seeking Alpha and FXStreet. Based in Israel, Kenny has been a MarketPulse contributor since 2012.