Talking Points:
- The Euro little changed versus the US Dollar
- German Joblessness increase by seasonally adjusted 2k
- Unemployment rate unchanged at 6.4%
The Euro was little changed versus the US Dollar after today’s German unemployment data unexpectedly showed joblessness increased by a seasonally adjusted 2,000 individuals, subsequently adding to the number of people unemployed, which stands at 2.795 million. The number fell below economist’s expectation for an increase of 5,000 individuals to the labor force, as the unemployment rate remained unchanged at 6.4%. The numbers came after German retail sales earlier today did not meet expectations with a drop of 0.4% in August, thus adding to an overall weaker growth picture for Germany, and subsequently the entire Eurozone. With the Eurozone CPI data coming up later today, investors appeared to be inclined to add new shorts on the Euro.
At the beginning of the month, ECB’s President Mario Draghi said the central bank is ready to expand its quantitative-easing program on a weaker inflation outlook. German data today will do little to help the overall inflation outlook in the Eurozone’s economy and will put the CPI data later today firmly in focus.
DailyFX Currency Analyst David Song said a slowdown in the Euro-Zone’s Consumer Price Index today may put increased pressure on the European Central Bank to further embark on its easing cycle.
