The Euro advanced against 12 of its 16 counterpart currencies, including the US Dollar, as optimism about a healthy growth in the European economy overtook concerns about the region’s debt crisis. The Euro-USD exchange rate rose by 0.1439 percent to USD $ 1.4212.
The EU’s economy grew at an annual rate of 2.2 percent in the first quarter of this year, up from the annual growth rate of 2 percent in the fourth quarter of last year. However, underlying concerns about a possible recon structuring of Greece’s debt will prevent the Euro from registering substantial levels of appreciation against the US Dollar.
Meanwhile, the US Dollar advanced against the Japanese Yen. Concerns about the European Debt Crisis have discouraged Asian investors from investing in riskier assets in the Euro zone, focusing instead on safer assets such as the US Dollar. This has led to a spike in the demand of the USD, fueling its value against the Yen. The USD-JPY exchange rate rose by 0.0953 percent to 81.1245 Yen.
The Australian Dollar dropped against 15 out of 16 other major currencies, including the Japanese Yen, after employment dropped by the greatest amount since 2009. The AUD-JPY exchange rate was at 86.7867 Yen.
The number of people employed in April fell by 22100.This increase in the number of people fired from their jobs can be attributed to high oil prices, taxation concerns and a strong currency. The increase in the unemployed people has forced some investors to cut down on their expectations of the Australian central bank raising interest rates, contributing to the decline in the value of the Aussie.