Euro down over 2 cents vs. USD

The euro weakened considerably against the US dollar yesterday, dropping 2.12 cents (1.51%) to finish at $1.3802.

• In early trading yesterday, the euro weakened by over a cent against the dollar after Russia’s finance minister reaffirmed the greenback’s status as the world’s premier reserve currency. Russia holds roughly 30% of its $404.2 billion foreign exchange reserves in US Treasuries, making it the fifth-largest holder of US government debt.
  
• Also contributing to the downward pressure on the single currency yesterday were first-quarter eurozone employment figures, which revealed a 1.22 million job loss over the period.
  
• So far today, the euro has pared some of the losses it made yesterday as investors continue to digest recent economic announcements.
  
• In the eurozone, German ZEW Economic Sentiment data and inflation figures are out at 10.00 BST today, whilst in the US Building Permits data is due at 13.30 BST.