EUR/USD faced challenging retracements on Thursday as thin holiday trading stirred volatility around the final trading day of 2023.
The Euro (EUR) swiftly climbed to a 21-week high of 1.1140 early on Thursday as broader markets continued to shed the US Dollar (USD) on expectations of a rate cut from the Federal Reserve. However, market over-expectations regarding the Fed's structural pivot played out well before today, and the uptick in the 7-year US Treasury yields triggered a retreat to the safe-haven USD, pushing riskier assets like the Euro back into the red on the last trading day of 2023.
Initial US unemployment claims for the week ending December 22 also rose, indicating 218 thousand new claims compared to the previous week's adjusted 206 thousand. Additionally, pending home sales in the US for November fell short of market expectations, holding at 0.0% and missing the market forecast of a 1.0% recovery from October's adjusted -1.5% decline.
As the year concludes, the EUR/USD forex pair grapples with market dynamics influenced by shifting expectations, economic data, and ongoing global uncertainties. Traders are closely monitoring these factors as they navigate the currency markets in anticipation of the new year.