Investing.com - The euro was stuck in a narrow range against the other major currencies on Tuesday, as investor confidence was buoyed by hopes that the European Central Bank will soon announce measures to stem the debt crisis in the region.
During European late morning trade, the euro was hovering close to a two-month high against the U.S. dollar, with EUR/USD inching up 0.04% to 1.2596.
The euro continued to be supported by expectations that the ECB will announce details of measures to help stabilize the region’s sovereign debt markets after its upcoming policy setting meeting on Thursday.
The shared currency was little changed after ratings agency Moody’s lowered its outlook on the European Union's triple-A rating to negative, from stable.
Investors were also anticipating the upcoming Federal Reserve policy meeting, amid speculation over how close the U.S. central bank is to implementing another round of easing.
The single currency was slightly higher against the pound, with EUR/GBP easing up 0.11% to 0.7933.
In the U.K., concerns over the economic outlook were underlined after data showed that the construction sector contracted in August, as new orders fell at the sharpest rate since April 2009.
Markit said the U.K. construction purchasing managers' index fell to 49.0 in August from 50.9 in July, compared to expectations for a reading of 50.0.
The euro was trading close to a six-week high against the yen, with EUR/JPY rising 0.27% to 98.80 and remained almost unchanged against the Swiss franc, with EUR/CHF inching up 0.01% to 1.2010.
The Swissie shrugged off official data showing that Switzerland’s gross domestic product contracted by 0.1% in the second quarter, disappointing expectation for a 0.2% increase, as exports to the euro zone fell.
The Swiss economy still expanded at an annualized rate of 0.5% in the three months to June, compared with the same period last year.
The shared currency was mixed against the Australian, Canadian and New Zealand dollars, with EUR/AUD edging up 0.03% to 1.2292, EUR/CAD dipping 0.07% to 1.2404 and EUR/NZD rising 0.37% to 1.5845.
The Reserve Bank of Australia left its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 3.50% following its policy meeting earlier, and said current monetary policy remained appropriate, despite the moderating pace of global growth.
Later Tuesday, the Institute for Supply Management was to release a closely watched report on U.S. manufacturing growth.
During European late morning trade, the euro was hovering close to a two-month high against the U.S. dollar, with EUR/USD inching up 0.04% to 1.2596.
The euro continued to be supported by expectations that the ECB will announce details of measures to help stabilize the region’s sovereign debt markets after its upcoming policy setting meeting on Thursday.
The shared currency was little changed after ratings agency Moody’s lowered its outlook on the European Union's triple-A rating to negative, from stable.
Investors were also anticipating the upcoming Federal Reserve policy meeting, amid speculation over how close the U.S. central bank is to implementing another round of easing.
The single currency was slightly higher against the pound, with EUR/GBP easing up 0.11% to 0.7933.
In the U.K., concerns over the economic outlook were underlined after data showed that the construction sector contracted in August, as new orders fell at the sharpest rate since April 2009.
Markit said the U.K. construction purchasing managers' index fell to 49.0 in August from 50.9 in July, compared to expectations for a reading of 50.0.
The euro was trading close to a six-week high against the yen, with EUR/JPY rising 0.27% to 98.80 and remained almost unchanged against the Swiss franc, with EUR/CHF inching up 0.01% to 1.2010.
The Swissie shrugged off official data showing that Switzerland’s gross domestic product contracted by 0.1% in the second quarter, disappointing expectation for a 0.2% increase, as exports to the euro zone fell.
The Swiss economy still expanded at an annualized rate of 0.5% in the three months to June, compared with the same period last year.
The shared currency was mixed against the Australian, Canadian and New Zealand dollars, with EUR/AUD edging up 0.03% to 1.2292, EUR/CAD dipping 0.07% to 1.2404 and EUR/NZD rising 0.37% to 1.5845.
The Reserve Bank of Australia left its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 3.50% following its policy meeting earlier, and said current monetary policy remained appropriate, despite the moderating pace of global growth.
Later Tuesday, the Institute for Supply Management was to release a closely watched report on U.S. manufacturing growth.