German flash manufacturing PMI rose to 54.2 points and the services PMI moved up to 55 points. Markit’s purchasing managers’ index for the manufacturing sector was expected to tick up from 53.7 to 53.9 points. The services PMI carried expectations for a rise from 53 to 53.5 points. The divergence between the two core countries in the euro-zone is alive and kicking.
EUR/USD was “hugging†the 1.38 level prior to the publication, sliding towards the round number on the French miss. It is now rebounding on the positive German figures.
Earlier, French flash indicators came out below expectations: the manufacturing sector’s PMI dropped from 51.8 to 50.9 points and the services sector’s PMI fell from 51.5 to 50.3 points. Both were expected to remain almost unchanged in Europe’s second largest economy.
The flash PMIs for the whole euro-zone will be released soon. Early expectations stand on 53 for manufacturing and 52.7 for services.
Support is found at 1.3740 and resistance around 1.3830. For more, see the EURUSD forecast.
