Investing.com - The euro edged lower against the U.S. dollar on Friday, but remained supported as Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's comments on Wednesday continued to weigh on demand for the greenback.
EUR/USD hit 1.3074 during late Asian trade, the session low; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.3077, slipping 0.14%.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.3007, Thursday's low and resistance at 1.3206, the high of July 10.
The greenback weakened broadly after Bernanke on Wednesday said the Fed will continue to maintain accommodative monetary policy for the foreseeable future, citing low levels of inflation and the high unemployment rate.
Bernanke said the bank will not raise interest rates until the U.S. unemployment rate hits 6.5%.
The comments came after the minutes of the central bank’s June policy meeting showed that Fed policymakers remain divided over when to begin tapering its USD85 billion-a-month asset purchase program.
Around half of Fed policymakers believe the bank should start to scale back bond purchases by the end of the year, while many others believe the labor market still remains too weak.
Meanwhile, sentiment on the euro remained fragile after the European Central Bank’s monthly bulletin said Thursday that the extended period of time the bank expects interest rates to remain at present or lower levels is “flexible” and indicated that further rate cuts are possible.
The euro was steady against the pound with EUR/GBP dipping 0.06%, to hit 0.8618.
Later in the day, the euro zone was to release official data on industrial production.
The U.S. was to produce official data on producer price inflation and preliminary data from the University of Michigan on consumer sentiment.
EUR/USD hit 1.3074 during late Asian trade, the session low; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.3077, slipping 0.14%.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.3007, Thursday's low and resistance at 1.3206, the high of July 10.
The greenback weakened broadly after Bernanke on Wednesday said the Fed will continue to maintain accommodative monetary policy for the foreseeable future, citing low levels of inflation and the high unemployment rate.
Bernanke said the bank will not raise interest rates until the U.S. unemployment rate hits 6.5%.
The comments came after the minutes of the central bank’s June policy meeting showed that Fed policymakers remain divided over when to begin tapering its USD85 billion-a-month asset purchase program.
Around half of Fed policymakers believe the bank should start to scale back bond purchases by the end of the year, while many others believe the labor market still remains too weak.
Meanwhile, sentiment on the euro remained fragile after the European Central Bank’s monthly bulletin said Thursday that the extended period of time the bank expects interest rates to remain at present or lower levels is “flexible” and indicated that further rate cuts are possible.
The euro was steady against the pound with EUR/GBP dipping 0.06%, to hit 0.8618.
Later in the day, the euro zone was to release official data on industrial production.
The U.S. was to produce official data on producer price inflation and preliminary data from the University of Michigan on consumer sentiment.