The euro is the official currency of 16 of the 27 member states of the European Union (EU). The states, known collectively as the Eurozone, are: Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Spain. The currency is also used in a further five European countries, with and without formal agreements and is consequently used daily by some 327 million Europeans.[2]

Blog Archive

Thursday, April 2, 2009

Euro Gains Despite European Central Bank (ECB) Rate Cut - Why?

The euro ended Thursday on a mixed note, as the currency surged against the Japanese yen, US dollar, and Swiss franc but slipped against the ultra strong commodity dollars.

The moves came after the European Central Bank (ECB) cut rates by 25 basis points to 1.25 percent, which served as a positive surprise since a Bloomberg News poll had listed a forecast for a 50 basis point reduction. However, given the content of ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet’s post-meeting press conference, there is some bearish potential for the euro he not only left the door open to further rate cuts, but also hinted that quantitative easing may be discussed during their next meeting.

No comments:

Post a Comment