Euro firmer

The euro is firmer against the dollar this morning, trading at $1.22, and has also gained some ground against sterling, moving back up above the 86p level. The pound is not much changed against the US currency, hovering in and around the $1.4150 level

Equity markets in the US gained around 1% yesterday with European stocks closing up about 0.5%, while US and German 10-years have moved higher to 1.43% and -0.28% respectively

ECB member Schnabel has echoed her colleague Lagarde, saying the central bank is “monitoring closely” the rise in bond yields, saying a “too abrupt an increase…could jeopardize the economic recovery” in the Euro Area

Fed’s Clarida says “it will take some time for economic activity and employment to return to levels that prevailed at the business cycle peak reached last February”, adding that the central bank is  “committed” to supporting the US economy “to help ensure that the recovery from this difficult period will be as robust and rapid as possible”

Data due today include the Euro Area Economic Sentiment Indicator for February and jobless claims and GDP (Q4, 2nd estimate) in the US