EUR/USD sticks to modest gains near 1.1300 mark, lacks follow-through
- Mostly better-than-expected Euro-zone PMI prints lend some support to the Euro.
- Dovish ECB expectations/a modest USD rebound seemed to cap any further gains.
The EUR/USD pair held on to its mildly positive tone near weekly tops, albeit seemed struggling to extend the momentum further beyond the 1.1300 handle.
After the previous session's late pullback, the pair regained some positive traction for the third consecutive session on Friday and climbed to the top end of its weekly trading range in the wake of better-than-expected Euro-zone PMI prints.
The uptick, however, lacked any strong bullish conviction and remained capped near the 1.1315 immediate resistance amid expectations that the ECB is looking to the possibility of lower interest rate or restart the QE program.
Investors now seemed to have digested the latest dovish shift by the Fed and a modest uptick in the US Treasury bond yields pushed the US Dollar a little higher, which further collaborated towards keeping a lid on any subsequent up-move.
Even from a technical perspective, the pair remains well below a six-month-old descending trend-channel barrier and hence, it would be prudent to wait for a strong follow-through buying before positioning for any further appreciating move.
Later during the early North-American session, the US economic docket - featuring the release of flash manufacturing PMI and existing home sales data, might produce some short-term trading opportunities on the last day of the week.
Technical levels to watch