The single European currency has seen an upswing in the last few weeks, supported by the positive Eurozone economic data. In only 10 days, the Euro rose by more than 2.5% against the US dollar.
On Monday’s trading session, the euro hit a three-month high against the greenback.
The main reason that pushed the euro reached a record quarterly level is the comments by European Central Bank President Mario Draghi, who said he sees the inflation rate appreciating considerably in the euro zone. He is also optimistic that the ECB is going to go through an asset purchase program designed to stimulate the economy.
Regarding the US dollar, its moves against the Japanese Yen were slightly changed to a little higher, as JPY is seeking to get new clues to extend its rally in the greenback before the Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates this week.
Before the Federal Reserve’s decision on interest rates several days away, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi made a few positive comments in the currency markets about inflation and wage growth in the euro zone. Draghi stressed the central bank’s intention to keep interest rates at their level next year.
FX markets have seen comments by Mario Draghi as reinforcing the view that other central banks are doing the same thing as the Federal Reserve regarding the tightening of monetary policy. According to analysts, the difference between the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy tightening and other central banks is low or non-existent and therefore these trends would not support the dollar further.
In the early trading session on Monday, the euro rose 0.3% against the US dollar, trading at $1.1785 per euro, and then rising to a 3-month high of $1.1816 per euro. Meanwhile, the dollar was steady against the yen at 112.58 yen per dollar just a few days before the Federal Reserve’s decision on interest rates.
The markets expect the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates this week as well as another expected increase in December, followed by two new increases in 2019. This is in line with the expectations of Fed policymakers.
Analysts believe that the price of the USD will fall as a result of interest rate rises next year. The Federal Reserve could increase the expected rate hikes in 2019 from three to four times.
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