DOn Monday, the euro lost a good part of the gains it had made against the US dollar at the end of the week. After the common currency had climbed to $ 1.1365 on Friday, there was now a countermovement. The euro was temporarily traded at $ 1.1326 on Monday. The European Central Bank set the reference rate on Friday at 1.1298 (Thursday: 1.1315) dollars.
On Friday, a mixed US labor market report weighed on the dollar in late trading. Investors in the foreign exchange market focused in particular on the weak employment trend. At the beginning of the week, however, the focus was increasingly on the comparatively strong rise in wages, which could encourage the US Federal Reserve to tighten monetary policy. This prospect is also reflected in the recent rise in yields in the US, which can direct money flows into America, making the dollar look more attractive compared to other major currencies.
British pound still on the rise
Meanwhile, the British pound continued to rise against the euro and reached its highest level since February 2020. Stock marketers pointed to the prospect of a further upward rate hike by the British central bank in the near future. In December, for the first time in the corona pandemic, it increased the key interest rate in order to counter the high inflation.
The latest economic data, however, hardly moved the euro. In the euro zone, unemployment fell again in November.
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