Investing.com - The euro pushed lower against the U.S. dollar on Tuesday, as sentiment on the single currency remained vulnerable ahead of a meeting of European Union finance ministers later in the day, as well as a highly-anticipated German court ruling on the EU’s bailout fund.
EUR/USD hit 1.2334 during U.S. morning trade, the daily low; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.2272, shedding 0.32%.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.2254, Monday’s low and a two-year low and resistance at 1.2400, the high of July 6.
Markets eyed talks between EU finance ministers, after euro zone officials agreed on Monday to make EUR30 billion in aid available to assist Spain’s struggling banking sector by the end of the month, while also supporting plans to extend Spain’s deficit target deadline by one year to 2014.
They made no apparent progress, however, on activating the bloc's rescue funds to intervene in bond markets and bring down Spain and Italy’s spiraling borrowing costs.
Spain’s 10-year government bonds eased to 6.74% earlier, moving below the critical 7% threshold which is widely seen as unsustainable in the long term.
Markets were also jittery as Germany's top court was due to decide whether the EU's permanent bailout fund is compatible with national law, potentially leading to deeper fiscal integration within the region.
Earlier in the day, official data showed that French industrial production tumbled 1.9% in May, far more than expectations for a 0.9% fall and following a 1.4% rise the previous month.
Elsewhere, the euro fell to a fresh one-and-a-half year low against the pound with EUR/GBP dropping 0.29%, to hit 0.7907.
Also Tuesday, the U.K. Office for National Statistics said that manufacturing production rose by 1.2% in May, blowing past expectations for a more modest 0.1% gain, after falling by 0.8% in April.
A separate report showed that the U.K.’s goods trade deficit narrowed to a seasonally adjusted GBP8.4 billion in May from a deficit of GBP9.7 billion in April, as exports jumped 6.6%.
EUR/USD hit 1.2334 during U.S. morning trade, the daily low; the pair subsequently consolidated at 1.2272, shedding 0.32%.
The pair was likely to find support at 1.2254, Monday’s low and a two-year low and resistance at 1.2400, the high of July 6.
Markets eyed talks between EU finance ministers, after euro zone officials agreed on Monday to make EUR30 billion in aid available to assist Spain’s struggling banking sector by the end of the month, while also supporting plans to extend Spain’s deficit target deadline by one year to 2014.
They made no apparent progress, however, on activating the bloc's rescue funds to intervene in bond markets and bring down Spain and Italy’s spiraling borrowing costs.
Spain’s 10-year government bonds eased to 6.74% earlier, moving below the critical 7% threshold which is widely seen as unsustainable in the long term.
Markets were also jittery as Germany's top court was due to decide whether the EU's permanent bailout fund is compatible with national law, potentially leading to deeper fiscal integration within the region.
Earlier in the day, official data showed that French industrial production tumbled 1.9% in May, far more than expectations for a 0.9% fall and following a 1.4% rise the previous month.
Elsewhere, the euro fell to a fresh one-and-a-half year low against the pound with EUR/GBP dropping 0.29%, to hit 0.7907.
Also Tuesday, the U.K. Office for National Statistics said that manufacturing production rose by 1.2% in May, blowing past expectations for a more modest 0.1% gain, after falling by 0.8% in April.
A separate report showed that the U.K.’s goods trade deficit narrowed to a seasonally adjusted GBP8.4 billion in May from a deficit of GBP9.7 billion in April, as exports jumped 6.6%.