Euro Strengthened on Friday to an 8th Day Record High

LONDON, U.K. – The Euro rises on Friday, which pushed the British pound higher and the US dollar lower, as market players prepare their portfolios before the end of the year.

The thin liquidity following most of the market closing for the Christmas holiday amplified the moves of the spectators on Friday, which led the Euro to rise and dragging the Sterling higher.

With the dim economic data in Europe, market players are bet against the already weaker Euro in 2019. However, the currency traded positively on Friday, recording gains to reach an eight-day record high as it marked $1.1142 points.

According to an analyst at Commerzbank, Ulrich Leuchtmann, what the market suggests is some strength gains for the Euro. The sentiment towards a negative Euro in the market has prevailed in most of 2019, but this period when there is limited and low liquidity, more market players are leaning towards removing any short positions in the market, Leuchtmann said.

He further stated that the short-time trend of an increasing euro is looking to extend until next week as the next decade approaches. Leauchtmann also said that speculators are saying that it might be wise to keep those short positions throughout the period.

Previously, leveraged funds have dropped their short Euro positions further away from its $14.84 billion high in 2019. In the week to December 17, it was down to $9.16 billion.

Meanwhile, the disruption in the Euro might be limited to those with large numbers and expires at around $1.1155 to $1.1160.

The recent strength of the Euro has also been positive for the British pound. The Euro gains on Friday dragged the Pound towards its current $1.3075, marking its one-week record high. The Sterling has also advanced to 85.17 pence, marking its four-day record high against the Euro.

Aside from the boost of the Euro’s strength for the day, most of the gains for the Sterling came after the statement by Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission President, stating that the EU might need to extend the negotiation deadlines regarding the new trade relations with Britain.

Elsewhere in the market, the US dollar was weak against the safe-haven Japanese yen. The currency fell by around 0.2% for the day at 109.48 yen. However, the Dollar is still near its 109.73 six-month record high from the start of this month.

The trade-sensitive Australian dollar has also strengthened against the US dollar, rising to as much as $0.6958.

China’s yuan, on the other hand, dipped against the US dollar, mostly pressured by the increasing corporate demands for the dollar.