As the third largest economy in the Eurozone, the news that there will likely be a postponement of Italy's budget meeting resulted in nervous investors. That led to the a fall for the common currency Euro against the greenback, with the worry being that Italy's ruling parties might attempt to obtain a larger deficit target. Italy is one of the most heavily indebted countries within the Eurozone, and the political wrangling there has weighed heavily on the Euro. Also weighing on the common currency was a media report which suggested that Giovanni Tria, the Economy Minister, was prepared to resign; a spokesperson, however, denied those claims.
As reported at 11:02 am (BST) in London, the EUR/USD was trading at $1.1709, down 0.27% and well off the session low of $1.16853; the high for the trading day was recorded at $1.17571. The EUR/GBP was trading flat at 0.8917 Pence; the pair has ranged from a low of 0.89054 Pence to a peak of 0.89367 Pence.
Eurozone Data Disappoints
The latest data from the Eurozone also failed to provide a lift for the Euro. The European Commission reported that recent surveys, with the exception of Business Climate, were below expectations. The Business Climate survey for September came in at 1.21, unchanged, while Industrial Confidence slipped to 4.7 from 5.6, below forecasts of 5.1. The Economic Sentiment Indicator came in at 110.9, below the 111.2 expected. Later today, preliminary inflation reports are due out on Germany, with analysts predicting that the Harmonized Index of Consumer Prices for September (year-over-year) will be at 2.0%, above the previous reading of 1.9%.