EUR/USD: Euro Declined Following Weak Italian And Spanish PMI Data

EUR/USD: Euro Declined Following Weak Italian And Spanish PMI Data

For the 24 hours to 23:00 GMT on Friday, EUR declined 1.00% against the USD and closed at 1.2817, amid disappointing manufacturing data from Spain and Italy. Moreover, the greenback rose after an increase in the US non-farm payroll employment and factory orders in October, raising investor speculation that the Federal Reserve may be less likely to embark on further quantitative easing.

In economic news, Euro zone's manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) rose to 45.4 in October, from 45.3 in the previous month. Meanwhile, Germany's manufacturing PMI rose to a seasonally adjusted 46.0 in October, from 45.7 in the previous month. Separately, on a seasonally adjusted basis, French manufacturing PMI rose to 43.7 in October, compared to a reading of 43.5 in the previous month. Also, on a seasonally adjusted basis, Spanish manufacturing PMI declined to a reading of 43.5 in October, while the Italian manufacturing PMI declined to 45.5 in October.

In the US, non-farm payroll employment increased by 171,000 jobs in October, following an upwardly revised increase of 148,000 jobs in September. Meanwhile, factory orders rose 4.8% (MoM) in September, compared to a revised 5.1% fall in August. However, unemployment rate rose to 7.9% in October, from 7.8% in September.