It’s been a choppy start to the day for euro, with downward pressure from poor-than-expected business confidence figures moderated by positive German inflation and consumer confidence figures.
Business confidence for the eurozone fell from 0.17, not to the expected 0.08, but down to -0.12, the lowest level since September 2013. Industrial sentiment dropped to -7.4, just below market expectations of -7. However, consumer confidence is on the up, both for the eurozone and for Germany on its own.
French GDP figures also came in slightly below expectations, as consumers cut back on spending. Usually, the French economy is less open to external shocks due to its high reliance on internal demand, but this does also mean that it is very exposed to French household spending.
Spanish GDP has just come in slightly below expectations for this quarter. Nonetheless, current account figures are over €3 billion higher than the markets had expected.
It will be interesting to see the eurozone’s GDP growth figures later this morning. If they too come in below expectations, we could see an impact on the euro.
