Euro slips to one-month low as Macron calls French election after EU vote
Istanbul, June 10 (Hibya) - The euro fell on Monday as French President Emmanuel Macron called a shock election after being trounced in the European Union vote by the far-right, while the dollar was steady ahead of the Federal Reserve meeting later in the week.
The euro fell to $1.0764, its lowest since May 9, in early trading in Asia. It was last down 0.24 percent at $1.0776 as investors weighed the implications of renewed political uncertainty in the euro zone’s second-biggest economy in a key election year.
Eurosceptic nationalists made the most significant gains in European Parliament elections in the Sunday vote, an aggregated exit poll showed, prompting Macron to take a risky gamble to reestablish his authority.
The European Central Bank cut rates last week in a well-telegraphed move but offered few hints about the outlook for monetary policy given that inflation is still above target.
The dollar index, which measures the U.S. currency against six rivals, was at 105.09, the highest since May 30, after rising 0.8 percent on Friday following data showing the world’s largest economy created many more jobs than expected in May.
The Fed is not expected to make any change at its policy meeting this week. Still, the focus will be on the comments from Fed Chair Jerome Powell and changes to economic projections from the policymakers. U.S. inflation data is also due on Wednesday.