EUR/USD puts 1.0900 to the test ahead of Lagarde, Powell
- EUR/USD drops to new YTD lows around 1.0900.
- Concerns around the coronavirus continue to ebb.
- ECB’s Lagarde, Fed’s Powell coming up next in the docket.
EUR/USD keeps losing ground so far this week and is now threatening to break below the key support at 1.09 the figure.
EUR/USD looks to ECB, Powell, USD
The continuation of the rally in the greenback keeps the downside pressure intact on the pair, which is now losing ground for the seventh consecutive session and navigating the area of fresh yearly lows in the 1.09 neighbourhood.
Further south, it is worth mentioning that there are no significant support levels until the 2019 low at 1.0879. in fact, recent activity in futures markets leaves the door open for a deeper retracement and a tangible chance of testing this area in the near-term.
In the meantime, the upbeat sentiment remains well and sound around the riskier assets on the back of easing jitters surrounding the Wuhan coronavirus, all rendering into further gains for the buck.
Later in the session, ECB’s C.Lagarde will speak at the ECB Annual Report at the European Parliament, while ECB’s board members P.Lane and I.Schnabel will speak at events in Berlin and Karlsruhe, respectively.
Across the pond, and in what will be the salient event on Tuesday, Fed’s J.Powell will testify before the House Financial Services Panel. Additionally, FOMC’s Daly, Bullard, Quarles and Kashkari are also due to speak later on Tuesday.
What to look for around EUR
The pair has intensified the downside in past hours and is now trading closer to the 2019 low in the 1.0880 region. As usual, dynamics around the buck are expected to remain the exclusive driver of the pair’s price action for the time being along with alternating risk appetite trends in response to developments from the Wuhan coronavirus and the US-China trade scenario. On another front, the ECB is expected to finish its “strategic review” (announced at its January meeting) by year-end, leaving speculations of any change of the monetary policy before that time pretty flat. Further out, some better-than-expected results in the euro region as of late seem to have lent support to the idea that the bloc could have left the worst behind, although that view looks premature, to say the least.
EUR/USD levels to watch
At the moment, the pair is losing 0.02% at 1.0909 and a breakdown of 1.0905 (weekly/2020 low Feb.11) would target 1.0879 (2019 low Oct.1) en route to 1.0569 (monthly low Apr.10 2017). On the other hand, the next up barrier aligns at 1.0998 (10-day SMA) seconded by 1.1064 (100-day SMA) and finally 1.1094 (weekly high Jan.31).