Investing.com - The euro slid against the dollar on Thursday, re-approaching seven-month lows amid heightened expectations that the European Central Bank will announce further monetary stimulus measures at its upcoming meeting next week.
EUR/USD eased 0.13% to 1.0610, nearing Wednesday’s lows of 1.0565, the weakest level since April 14.
The euro remained under pressure amid heightened expectations that the ECB will implement fresh measures to combat slowing growth and inflation in the euro area.
Late last week ECB head Mario Draghi gave the clearest signal yet that the bank will unleash new easing measures, saying the back is ready to act quickly to boost inflation in the region.
The euro fell to seven month lows against the yen overnight, with EUR/JPY hitting 129.89, before edging back up to 130.14.
Upbeat U.S. economic reports on durable goods and jobless claims on Wednesday underlined the diverging monetary policy expectations between the Federal Reserve and the ECB.
The U.S. central bank is widely expected to hike interest rates for the first time in almost a decade at its December meeting.
Higher U.S. interest rates would make the dollar more attractive to yield-seeking investors.
The dollar edged lower against the yen, with USD/JPY dipping 0.11% to 122.62 in holiday thinned trade.
The U.S. dollar index, which measures the greenback’s strength against a trade-weighted basket of six major currencies, was at 99.9, not far from Wednesday’s peaks of 100.21.