EUR/USD slides on tariff turmoil, euro CPI rises

The euro has weakened at the start of the new week. EUR/USD slumped over the weekend and dropped as low as 1.0141, its lowest level since Nov. 2022. The euro has recovered somewhat on Monday and is trading at 1.0277 in the North American session. Still, the euro has dropped 0.76% since Friday’s close.

US hits Canada with tariffs, Mexico gets reprieve

US President Trump hasn’t wasted any time and imposed 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada over the weekend, effective February 4. Mexico and Canada have both announced retaliatory tariffs in response. Earlier today, just one day before the tariffs were to take effect, the US announced that the tariffs against Mexico would be delayed for a month. The breather is good news, but the US could still find itself embroiled in a trade war with its two neighbors, in what is the world’s largest trade zone.

Trump hasn’t slapped the European Union with any tariffs yet, but said on Friday that he would “absolutely” go after imports from the EU. Global markets have been hit by fears of a global trade war resulting from the US tariffs and the US dollar is up sharply against most of the major currencies, including the euro.

Eurozone CPI accelerates to 2.5%

Inflation in the eurozone ticked upwards to 2.5% y/y in January from 2.4% in December, above the market estimate of 2.4%. This was the highest CPI level since July 2024, driven mainly by a sharp jump in energy prices. Core CPI, which excludes food and energy prices, remained unchanged at 2.7% y/y for a fifth straight month, just above the market estimate of 2.6%. This is above the European Central Bank’s 2% target but is the lowest level since January 2022. Services inflation, which is closely watched by the ECB, eased to 3.9% in January, down from 4% in December.

Today’s inflation report affirms that inflationary risks remain and could complicate the ECB’s plans to reduce interest rates and kick-start the weak eurozone economy. The ECB meets next on March 6.

 EUR/USD Technical

  • EUR/USD has pushed above resistance at 1.0244 and is testing resistance at 1.0297
  • There is support at 1.0203 and 1.0175

https://www.tradingview.com/chart/vRyCBCE0/

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Kenny Fisher

Kenny Fisher

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