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Illustrative file photo of 100 euro bills
Por John McCrank
NEW YORK, March 10 (Archyde.com) – The euro fell from gains in global trading on Thursday following the European Central Bank said it will scrap its stimulus package in the third quarter, while the dollar strengthened following a solid US inflation report.
* The ECB statement, which left the door open for an interest rate hike before the year is out as rising inflation offsets concerns regarding the fallout from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, briefly sent the euro higher before it change the perception of investors.
* The ECB lags behind other major central banks such as the Federal Reserve and the Bank of England in the post-pandemic tightening cycle, which has also weighed on the common currency.
* The euro hit a 22-month low of $1.0804 this week, with investors expecting the Ukraine crisis to have a sizeable impact on Europe’s growth. The coin has been widely seen as an indicator of Europe’s biggest security crisis since 1945.
* By followingnoon in New York, the euro was down 0.83% at $1.0985, following jumping 1.6% on Wednesday, its best day in nearly six years.
* Meanwhile, markets expect the Fed to raise the benchmark overnight rate by at least 25 basis points at its meeting next week.
* The dollar index rose 0.547% to 98.506, following falling 1.17% on Wednesday.
* Data released Thursday showed US consumer prices rose 7.9% year-on-year in February, the biggest annual increase in 40 years.
* Inflation is set to accelerate further in the coming months, as Russia’s war once morest Ukraine drives up the cost of oil and other raw materials.
(Reporting by John McCrank, Additional reporting by Julien Ponthus in London; edited in Spanish by Manuel Farías)