EUR/USD hit 1.3230 during European morning trade, the pair’s highest since April 4; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.3225, up 0.25%.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.3144, Tuesday’s low and resistance at 1.3292, the high of March 23.
While the Fed was expected to reiterate its intent to keep U.S. interest rates near zero through late 2014, market participants were awaiting any indications that policymakers were considering a third round of quantitative easing measures.
Data on Tuesday showed that U.S. home prices and consumer confidence came in weaker-than-expected, while U.S. home sales fell slightly less-than-expected.
Market sentiment remained supported following relatively successful euro zone bond auctions on Tuesday but investors remained wary of pushing the single currency too high amid ongoing concerns over risks from politically instability in the region, stemming from France and The Netherlands.
Speaking earlier, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said that the central bank is confident the wider economy will eventually benefit from its long term refinancing operations.
Speaking before the European Parliament's Economic and Monetary Committee in Brussels, he gave no indication on whether the ECB will provide further support to banks or governments.
The euro was higher against the pound, with EUR/GBP adding 0.48% to hit 0.8212, but remained little changed against the safe haven yen, with EUR/JPY inching up 0.01% to hit 107.31.
Later Wednesday, the U.S. was to publish government data on durable goods orders. The Federal Reserve’s interest rate announcement was to be followed by a press conference with Chairman Ben Bernanke.
No comments:
Post a Comment