Forex: Weekly’s review

On Monday the euro fell for the first time in three days against the dollar as European finance ministers attempt to meet a self-imposed deadline for funding from the International Monetary Fund to address the region’s debt crisis. The 17-nation European currency has depreciated 2.8 percent versus the dollar this year and 6.6 percent against the yen. After falling to its weakest level against the dollar since January, the euro is poised to depreciate further as measures in the derivatives market show traders expect the blueprint unveiled by European leaders this month for a closer fiscal accord will fail to stem the declines. The yen dropped against most of its major counterparts amid concern a destabilization of the Korean peninsula will dim the outlook for Japan’s economy and security.

On Tuesday the euro rallied to a one-week high against the dollar after borrowing costs fell at a Spanish bill sale and German business confidence unexpectedly increased, easing concern the region’s debt crisis is worsening. The euro strengthened after the Ifo institute’s business climate index for Germany, based on a survey of 7,000 executives, rose to 107.2 this month from 106.6 in November, boosting optimism that Europe’s largest economy will avoid a recession next year. Economists expected a drop to 106, the median of 36 forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey showed. Spanish two-year notes rose for an eighth day and Italian bonds gained as the European Central Bank offered unlimited three-year loans to the region’s banks, boosting demand for higher-yielding assets, amid speculation banks bought the debt to use as collateral for ECB loans.

On Wednesday the euro fell against most of its major peers amid concern that European Central Bank measures to support its banking sector won’t be enough to arrest region’s worsening sovereign-debt crisis. The 17-nation currency erased an earlier advance as the ECB said it had awarded 489 billion euros ($637 billion) in 1,134- day loans to banks, more than the 293 billion euros forecast by economists, as investors bet the euro-region debt crisis is far from done. The euro-area economy will probably fail to grow next year after expanding 1.6 percent in 2011, while the U.S. is forecast to accelerate to 2.1 percent from 1.8 percent, according to Bloomberg surveys of economists.

On Thursday the euro fell against the U.S. dollar after the release of macroeconomic data on applications for unemployment insurance in the United States. The dollar has grown, despite the negative data on GDP for the third quarter, where the value was 1.8% versus 2.0%. Significant impact on the market have data on the labor market, where the value was 364 thousand vs. 376 thousand in government in Italy, Mario Monti won a confidence vote in the Senate on measures of austerity. The British pound rose against the U.S. dollar after the published statistics showed that UK GDP has exceeded the preliminary estimate. GDP grew in the third quarter of 2011 by 0.6% over the previous three months. Bank of England, King said that the prospects for growth and market conditions have deteriorated, and he is concerned about the threat posed by the debt crisis. In this case, the dependence on central bank has increased.King believes that banks need to raise capital without reducing the volume of lending.

On Friday the euro weakened against most of its major peers as French gross domestic product grew at a slower pace than previously estimated, adding to concern the European economy is stalling. France’s GDP rose 0.3 percent from the second quarter, when it fell 0.1 percent, French statistics institute Insee in Paris said today. It had previously reported a gain o 0.4 percent. In the year, the economy expanded 1.5 percent, down from 1.7 percent in the previous quarter. Canada’s currency reached to its strongest level in more than a week versus the greenback after reports showed the economic recovery gaining momentum in the U.S., the nation’s largest trading partner. The loonie, as the currency is known for the image of the waterfowl on the dollar coin, rose 0.1 percent to C$1.0188, after earlier reaching C$1.0181, the strongest level since Dec. 12.