Investing.com - The euro was little changed against the U.S. dollar on Monday, after the release of upbeat U.S. service sector data, as concerns over mounting tensions in Ukraine continued to weigh on sentiment.
EUR/USD hit 1.3886 during U.S. morning trade, the pair's highest since April 30; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.3878, inching up 0.06%.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.3812, the low of May 2 and resistance at 1.3905, the high of April 11.
In a report, the Institute of Supply Management said its non-manufacturing purchasing managers' index rose to a five-month high of 55.2 in April, from a reading of 53.1 in March, compared to expectations for a rise to 54.1.
But the dollar remained under pressure, as Friday's U.S. employment report showed that the labor force participation rate, which measures the proportion of people either working or looking for work, fell and wage growth weakened.
In the euro zone, data earlier showed that the Sentix index of euro zone investor confidence deteriorated unexpectedly this month, falling to 12.8 from a reading of 14.1 in April. Analysts had forecast an increase to 14.2.
A separate report showed that producer prices in the euro zone fell 0.2% in March from a month earlier, and were down 1.6% on a year-over-year basis.
Meanwhile, the European Commission said it expects the region’s economy to continue to recover through 2015, but warned that persistently low levels of inflation and geopolitical tensions with Russia could threaten the recovery.
The EC said the euro zone’s economy will expand 1.2% this year, unchanged from its February forecast and grow 1.7% in 2015, down slightly from 1.8% previously.
The commission cut its forecast for euro zone inflation to 0.8% this year and 1.2% in 2015, down from 1.0% and 1.3% in February.
The euro was higher against the pound, with EUR/GBP adding 0.15% to 0.8230.
Markets remained jittery after clashes broke out in at six cities in eastern Ukraine over the weekend while pro-Russian forces overran a police station in Odessa, freeing close to 70 activists held there.
The events came after the death of 46 people on Friday, marking the bloodiest day since the ousting of Viktor Yanukovich from the Ukrainian presidency in February.