Investing.com - The euro settled lower against the U.S. dollar in early trade Friday, as investor euphoria over a European settlement to address regional debt devolved into a more tempered scrutiny of the specific measures involved.
EUR/USD hit 1.4135 in early U.S. trade, the pair’s lowest since Thursday; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.4169, slipping 0.13%.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.3800, Wednesday’s low, and resistance at 1.4378, Thursday’s high.
Investors on Thursday welcomed the announcement from European officials as they presented their long-anticipated plan to address the euro-zone debt threat with an expansion of the European Financial Stability Facility to USD1.4 trillion.
The agreement included a vow from private investors to write-down 50% of their holdings in Greek government debt, as well a recapitalization of European banks with assistance from the International Monetary Fund.
Klaus Regling, chief executive of the EFSF, addressed questions concerning the role that China would be playing in the enhancement of the rescue fund, saying only that the Chinese are already regular buyers of EFSF bonds. Regling was scheduled to visit Beijing to discuss China’s participation in any new investment package.
Meanwhile Friday, Fitch Ratings said the plan announced by European leaders was a “positive step” but that the effectiveness of the proposals would depend largely on “greater clarity in the details” and a “full and timely implementation.”
In the U.S., the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported that personal spending rose to a seasonally adjusted 0.6% in September from 0.2% in the previous month, in line with market expectations.
Personal income, however did not keep pace with spending, rising only 0.1% in September, below market expectations of a 0.3% rise. The figures suggest that U.S. consumers were dipping into savings or taking on new debt in order to increase spending.
In afternoon trade, European shares surrendered a portion of gains made during Thursday’s rally, with France’s CAC down 0.56% to 3,160.74, Britain’s FTSE 100 fell 0.15% to 5,705.10, while Germany’s DAX climbed 0.22% to 6,351.52.
In Friday morning trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.21% to 12,234.80, the Nasdaq Composite Index gained 0.09% to 2,740.26, and the S&P 500 inched up 0.09% to 1,285.81.
Meanwhile, the euro was lower against both the British pound and the Japanese yen, with EUR/GBP down by 0.38% to hit 0.8779, and EUR/JPY lower by 0.40% to hit 107.31.
Eurostat was scheduled to release its latest unemployment figures for the euro-zone early next week.