EUR/USD slips to fresh 10-day lows amid persistent USD strength
The EUR/USD pair came under a renewed selling pressure in the NA session and dropped to its lowest level since April 28 at 1.0870. As of writing, the pair was trading at 1.0875, down 0.45%, or 50 pips, on the day.
The pair's latest decline seems to be triggered by another surge seen in the demand for the greenback, this time following the statements of Kansas City Fed President Esther George. Speaking at a conference, George suggested that delaying rate hikes would create risks for the economy and added that the recent jobless rate data points to the need of an adjustment in the monetary policy. Although George is a known hawk and a non-voter, her comments were seen as good enough excuses to buy more dollars by the participant.
After leaping to a session high at 99.50 in the early trading hours of the American session, the US Dollar Index went into a consolidation phase and was seen moving in a narrow channel. Following George's comments, however, the index was able to gather some bullish momentum and is now trying to refresh its session high. At the moment, the index is at 99.46, up 0.42% on the day.
- Fed's George: Falling jobless rate means adjusting monetary policy is of 'paramount importance'
Seeing how the DXY reacted to George's comments make the upcoming Fed speeches more important. Boston Fed President Rosengren will be up next at the top of the hour and later in the session, Dallas Fed President Kaplan will cross the wires.
Technical outlook
The pair could find the initial supports at 1.0860 (20-DMA) ahead of 1.0770 (200-DMA) and 1.0705 (100-DMA). On the upside, resistances align at 1.0935 (daily high), 1.10 (psychological level) and 1.1020 (May 8 high).
- EUR/USD stays negative near term – Scotiabank