EUR/USD PUSHES LOWER AFTER DISAPPOINTING GERMAN RETAIL SALE

• EUR/USD takes another step lower on poor German Retail Sales data. 
• Subdued consumer spending levels in Germany increase the probability the ECB will cut interest rates soon. 
• This contrasts with the US, where Fed officials are advocating a delay in rate cuts. 

EUR/USD edges down on Thursday, retesting key support at 1.0800, after the release of subpar German Retail Sales data raised further concerns over the health of Europe’s largest economy, weighing on the Euro (EUR). 

EUR/USD downtrend continues on fears Fed could delay cuts

EUR/USD’s move down extends the short-term downtrend that started after the rollover from the March 8 highs in the 1.0980s. The main catalyst appears to be the diverging commentary from rate-setters at the US Federal Reserve (Fed) and European Central Bank (ECB). 

Whilst at the beginning of March the ECB was signaling it would cut interest rates by June and the Fed potentially by as early as May, recent higher-than-expected US data and sticky inflation has led many Fed officials to question whether it may be too early to start cutting interest rates. 

The view the Fed may keep interest rates higher for longer has supported the US Dollar (USD) because higher interest rates tend to attract more foreign capital inflows. This is bearish for EUR/USD, which measures the buying power of a single Euro in USD terms. 

On Wednesday, Federal Reserve board member Christopher Waller added his voice to those advocating a delay, saying that “there is no rush to cut the policy rate,” in a speech to the Economic Club of New York, according to Reuters. 

ECB officials, on the other hand, have cleaved increasingly to June. Eurozone economic data has been on the whole disappointing compared to US data, although persistently high wage inflation still concerns some policymakers. 

EUR/USD took another step lower on Thursday after German Retail Sales in February showed shoppers on the whole tightening their purse strings. Weakening consumer spending is another sign inflation will come down further, prompting the ECB to cut interest rates. 

Retail Sales fell 2.7% YoY in Germany, which was far below estimates of a 0.8% decline, according to data from Statistisches Bundesamt Deutschland. Month-on-month the 1.9% decrease must have come as a shock after economists predicted a 0.3% rise.

Friday’s US core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index data for February – the Fed’s preferred gauge of inflation – is likely to be an even more important release for EUR/USD. 

A higher-than-expected result could push even further back the time when the Fed is expected to cut interest rates, with negative consequences for the pair