Euro Slides As German PMI Hits 16-Month Low

The euro weakened against the other major currencies in the European session on Thursday after data showed that Germany's private sector activity expanded at the slowest pace since July last year.

Data from Markit Economics showed that the composite output index fell to 52.1 in November from 53.9 in October. The activity expanded for 19 consecutive months but it was the slowest expansion in 16 months.

Output growth slowed at both manufacturers and service providers. The services Purchasing Managers' Index dropped unexpectedly to 52.1 from 54.4 a month ago. The score was forecast to rise to 54.5.

Likewise, the PMI for manufacturing fell to 50 from 51.4 in October, while it was expected to improve to 51.5.

The currency showed little reaction to the Eurozone PMI data.

Data from the same agency showed that Eurozone private sector growth slowed unexpectedly to a 16-month low in November. The composite output index dropped to 51.4 in November, the lowest score since July of last year, from 52.1 in October. Economists had forecast it to rise to 52.3.

The flash services Purchasing Managers' Index slid to 51.3 from 52.3 a month ago. The score was forecast to rise to 52.4.

Meanwhile, the European stocks are also lower, as minutes of the U.S. Federal Reserve's most recent policy meeting offered little insight into when interest rates could rise. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 index is currently down 0.37 percent or 24.87 points at 6,671, France's CAC 40 index is down 0.75 percent or 31.97 points at 4,234 and Germany's DAX is down 0.54 percent or 51.55 points at 9,421. In the Asian trading, the Euro held steady against most major currencies.

In the European trading, the Euro fell to a 2-day low of 1.2503 against the U.S. dollar, from an early high of 1.2574. If the euro extends downtrend, it is likely to find support around the 1.23 area.

Pulling away from a multi-year high of 149.13 against the yen, the euro edged down to 148.31. On the downside, 146.00 is seen as the support level for the euro.

Against the pound, the euro edged down to 0.7993 from an early high of 0.8026. The euro is likely to find support around the 0.793 area.

The euro edged down to 0.2010 against the Swiss franc around 4:00 am ET. The euro may test support near the 0.19 region.

Pulling away from multi-day highs of 1.6040 against the NZ dollar and 1.4265 against the Canadian dollar, the euro fell to 1.5943 and 1.4194, respectively. The euro is likely to find support around 1.57 against the kiwi and 1.40 against the loonie.

Against the Australian dollar, the euro dropped to 1.4549 from a multi-week high of 1.4631. If the euro extends its downtrend, it is likely to find support around the 1.43 area.

Looking ahead, U.S. weekly jobless claims for the week ended November 15, U.S. manufacturing PMI for November, leading indicator and existing home sales data for October, flash Eurozone consumer sentiment index for November and Canadian wholesale sales data for September are due to be released in the New York session.

At 7:45 am ET, Federal Reserve Governor Daniel Tarullo will deliver a speech at the Clearing House Conference in New York.

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