Investing.com - The euro extended losses against the U.S. dollar on Thursday, sliding to a session low, after an auction of Spanish government bonds met with reasonable demand but failed to ease concerns over the country’s fiscal health.
EUR/USD hit 1.3070 during European early afternoon trade, the session low; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.3076, shedding 0.35%.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.3003, the low of March 15 and resistance at 1.3140, Wednesday’s high.
Spain raised slightly more than the full targeted amount of EUR2.5 billion, while the yield on the country’s 10-year bonds was higher but remained below the 6% level.
Spain auctioned EUR1.11 billion of two-year bonds at an average yield of 3.46%, up from 2.06% at a similar auction last month and EUR1.42 billion of 10-year bonds at an average yield of 5.74%, up from 5.33% from a similar auction in March.
The increase in 10-year bond yields reflected concerns that that Spain’s government may struggle to reduce one of the largest deficits in the euro zone in the face of a looming recession.
Meanwhile, worries over Spain’s troubled banking sector weighed, after the country’s central bank said Wednesday that the amount of bad loans at domestic banks rose to an 18-year high in February.
The euro fell to a 19-month low against the stronger pound, with EUR/GBP shedding 0.29% to hit 0.8165 but clung to gains against the yen, with EUR/JPY up 0.13% to hit 106.75.
The yen was pressured lower by ongoing expectations for further easing measures by the Bank of Japan, after the central bank's governor reaffirmed a commitment to monetary easing in order to meet Japan’s targeted rate of inflation.
Later Thursday, the U.S. was to release official data on unemployment claims, followed by industry data on existing home sales and a report on manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia area.
EUR/USD hit 1.3070 during European early afternoon trade, the session low; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.3076, shedding 0.35%.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.3003, the low of March 15 and resistance at 1.3140, Wednesday’s high.
Spain raised slightly more than the full targeted amount of EUR2.5 billion, while the yield on the country’s 10-year bonds was higher but remained below the 6% level.
Spain auctioned EUR1.11 billion of two-year bonds at an average yield of 3.46%, up from 2.06% at a similar auction last month and EUR1.42 billion of 10-year bonds at an average yield of 5.74%, up from 5.33% from a similar auction in March.
The increase in 10-year bond yields reflected concerns that that Spain’s government may struggle to reduce one of the largest deficits in the euro zone in the face of a looming recession.
Meanwhile, worries over Spain’s troubled banking sector weighed, after the country’s central bank said Wednesday that the amount of bad loans at domestic banks rose to an 18-year high in February.
The euro fell to a 19-month low against the stronger pound, with EUR/GBP shedding 0.29% to hit 0.8165 but clung to gains against the yen, with EUR/JPY up 0.13% to hit 106.75.
The yen was pressured lower by ongoing expectations for further easing measures by the Bank of Japan, after the central bank's governor reaffirmed a commitment to monetary easing in order to meet Japan’s targeted rate of inflation.
Later Thursday, the U.S. was to release official data on unemployment claims, followed by industry data on existing home sales and a report on manufacturing activity in the Philadelphia area.