Eurozone inflation is steady but remains well below the ECB target of 2.0 percent. The eurozone annual inflation rate edged lower to 1.4% in March, compared to 1.5% in February. Low inflation means that the ECB is not under pressure to raise interest rates. After last week’s policy meeting, Mario Draghi noted that the economic outlook for the eurozone remains weak. With no interest hikes in sight and a sluggish eurozone economy, the euro will have likely have trouble making headway against the U.S. dollar.
EUR/USD continues to have an uneventful week. On Wednesday, the pair is trading at 1.1308, up 0.24% on the day. On the release front, eurozone CPI dipped to 0.8%, matching the forecast. The eurozone trade surplus jumped to EUR 19.5 billion in February, its highest level since April. There are no major U.S. events on the schedule. Thursday will be busy on both sides of the pond. Germany and the eurozone release services and manufacturing PMIs, and the U.S. posts retail sales and unemployment claims.