Euro slips, yen firms in ‘risk off’ response to Paris attacks
The safe-haven yen firmed while the euro slipped in a cautious start on Monday to foreign exchange trading after the attacks in Paris that killed more than 130 people.
The euro shed 0.5 percent to $1.0727 EUR= and was down 0.6 percent against its Japanese peer at 131.25 yen EURJPY=. The dollar was also softer against the yen at 122.32 JPY=.
“Currency markets have responded to the atrocities in Paris over the weekend,” said Richard Grace, chief currency strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia.
“The euro has begun early Monday trade lower and the dollar, yen and, to a lesser extent, the Swiss franc have opened up stronger.”
Most forex trading had waned in New York by the time the attacks began on Friday evening.
Police on Sunday launched an international hunt for a man they believe might have helped organize the deadly assaults with two of his brothers in Belgium.
There were no signs of panic in the market. The Australian dollar, often sold in times of market stress, softened initially but soon stabilized. It was last at $0.7128 AUD=D4, compared to around $0.7120 late in New York on Friday.
“Currencies are slightly weaker from their closing levels on Friday, which is the response you’d expect given that we expect investors to be relatively defensive in terms of risk sentiment early this week,” said Raiko Shareef, strategist at BNZ.
“It’s been a relatively modest reaction in currency markets, but in the direction that you would expect.”
Traders expect fundamentals to quickly reassert themselves.
Despite weak U.S. retail sales data on Friday, the Federal Reserve is still seen likely to hike interest rates next month. In contrast, the European Central Bank (ECB) is looking to inject more stimulus.
The greenback should outperform against this backdrop, while the euro is likely to remain under a cloud.
Japan’s third quarter gross domestic product figures are expected later in the morning, followed by inflation data out of the euro zone. ECB President Mario Draghi and Board member Vitor Constancio are due to speak at separate events on Monday.
