CURRENCY VIEW

Major Forex News
Euro Strengthens as German Factory Orders Jump; Aussie Weakens
The euro strengthened against the dollar and yen after German factory orders unexpectedly jumped in March, suggesting the region’s largest economy is starting to grow again.
The 17-member currency strengthened against all except three of its 16 major counterparts as the German data damped speculation the European Central Bank will take further steps to ease monetary policy. The Australian dollar fell after the central bank cut interest rates to a record low.
The euro gained 0.3 percent to $1.3117 as of 11:36 a.m. London time. The single currency strengthened 0.3 percent to 130.25 yen after dropping as much as 0.5 percent. The yen was little changed at 99.30 per dollar.
German factory orders, adjusted for seasonal swings and inflation, increased 2.2 percent from February, the Economy Ministry in Berlin said today. The median estimate in a survey of economists was for a 0.5 percent drop. The euro has risen 4.1 percent in the past six months, according to Bloomberg Correlation Weighted Indexes that track 10 developed-nation currencies. The dollar gained 1.1 percent and the yen slid 20 percent. The Australian dollar dropped 0.7 percent to $1.018 after falling 0.6 percent yesterday.