Investing.com – The euro extended losses against the pound on Wednesday, after official data showed that the number of people in the U.K. claiming unemployment benefits fell in February, confounding expectations for an increase.
EUR/GBP hit 0.8662 during European morning trade, the daily low; the pair subsequently consolidated at 0.8678, shedding 0.31%.
The pair was likely to find support at 0.8624, Tuesday’s low and short-term resistance at 0.8709, Tuesday’s high and a four-month high.
The Office for National Statistics said the number of people claiming jobless benefit fell by 10,200 last month, its biggest monthly drop since June. Analysts had forecast a rise of 1,000.
However, the report said that a broader measure of unemployment rose to an eight-month high. The number of people without a job rose by 27,000 in the fourth quarter to 2.529 million. That took the jobless rate to a 10-month high of 8.0%, compared with forecasts for a steady reading of 7.9%.
The euro was also lower against the U.S. dollar, with EUR/USD shedding 0.36% to hit 1.3945.
Earlier in the day, Moody's Investor Services announced a downgrade of Portugal's long-term government bond ratings, saying the country will continue to face low growth and funding pressure for years, even if it taps the European Union's bailout fund.
EUR/GBP hit 0.8662 during European morning trade, the daily low; the pair subsequently consolidated at 0.8678, shedding 0.31%.
The pair was likely to find support at 0.8624, Tuesday’s low and short-term resistance at 0.8709, Tuesday’s high and a four-month high.
The Office for National Statistics said the number of people claiming jobless benefit fell by 10,200 last month, its biggest monthly drop since June. Analysts had forecast a rise of 1,000.
However, the report said that a broader measure of unemployment rose to an eight-month high. The number of people without a job rose by 27,000 in the fourth quarter to 2.529 million. That took the jobless rate to a 10-month high of 8.0%, compared with forecasts for a steady reading of 7.9%.
The euro was also lower against the U.S. dollar, with EUR/USD shedding 0.36% to hit 1.3945.
Earlier in the day, Moody's Investor Services announced a downgrade of Portugal's long-term government bond ratings, saying the country will continue to face low growth and funding pressure for years, even if it taps the European Union's bailout fund.