Share

Euro weak ahead of ECB meeting

Tokyo - The euro on Friday hovered around seven-month lows on the dollar and was also weak against Asian currencies on speculation that the European Central Bank (ECB) will unleash fresh stimulus measures next week.

Further action by the ECB to boost the 19-nation eurozone economy was likely to heap pressure on Asian policymakers to loosen their own monetary policy in a bid to push down their units to stay competitive, analysts said.

The euro Friday declined against a string of currencies including the yen, South Korean won and Singapore dollar.

"(Asian) currencies don't look that cheap," Mitul Kotecha, head of Asian foreign-exchange and interest-rate strategy at Barclays in Singapore, told Bloomberg News.

"When you look at real-effective rates, they haven't weakened significantly. That's why there's probably still more room for further depreciation."

Speculation that the ECB will announce further measures at its Thursday meeting have also revived expectations that the single currency may soon hit parity with the dollar for the first time since 2002.

On Friday, the euro weakened to $1.0612 and ¥130.10 from $1.0622 and ¥130.18 in Asian trade on Thursday.

The dollar, meanwhile, rose to ¥122.61 on Friday from ¥122.56 in Tokyo the previous day.

The greenback has been boosted as the US Federal Reserve appears set to go in the opposite direction from ECB and Bank of Japan policymakers by raising interest rates as early as next month.

"While moves in the USD hold the key for all risk assets, this will largely be driven by the implied probability of a December rate hike from the Federal Reserve," Chris Weston, chief market strategist at IG, said in a client note.

The dollar also gained against a string of emerging currencies including Malaysia's ringgit and Indonesia rupiah, as well as the won and Taiwan dollar.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Rand - Dollar
19.00
-0.3%
Rand - Pound
24.14
-0.1%
Rand - Euro
20.65
-0.3%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.38
+0.3%
Rand - Yen
0.13
+0.5%
Platinum
905.16
-2.0%
Palladium
1,006.63
+0.1%
Gold
2,156.10
-0.2%
Silver
24.94
-0.4%
Brent Crude
86.89
+1.8%
Top 40
66,018
-0.4%
All Share
72,214
-0.3%
Resource 10
53,202
-0.2%
Industrial 25
100,016
-0.5%
Financial 15
16,587
-0.2%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Company Snapshot
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE
Government tenders

Find public sector tender opportunities in South Africa here.

Government tenders
This portal provides access to information on all tenders made by all public sector organisations in all spheres of government.
Browse tenders