The euro falls to its lowest level in more than two years against the dollar

The euro fell to a more than two-year low on Thursday against a dollar driven higher by the upcoming return to the White House of Donald Trump, who plans policies likely to boost inflation in the United States .

Around 11:55 GMT, the European currency lost 0.23% against the greenback, to 1.0332 dollars per euro, after having plunged to 1.0314 dollars, its best level since the end of November 2022 against the American currency .

On the foreign exchange market, the greenback also strengthened against the British currency, which lost 0.51%, to 1.2453 dollars per pound, after a lowest since April 2024, at 1.2435 dollars per pound. .

“This is simply a continuation of the upward trend in the dollar observed during the second part of last year, particularly after Donald Trump’s victory” in the US presidential election, said Russ Mold. , analyst at AJ Bell, interviewed by AFP.

Conversely, the Japanese currency is holding up against the greenback, benefiting from the optimism of Japanese economists towards further rate increases from the central bank of Japan (BoJ) in 2025. Around 11:55 GMT, the yen was showing almost stable (+0.01%) against the greenback, at 157.21 yen per dollar.

Drawing on Japanese economists, the Japan Times estimated on Wednesday that the BoJ is likely to raise rates two or three times this year, which could bring its key rate to 1.00% for the first time in three decades.

Since last March, the BoJ has begun normalizing its monetary policy by raising its rates twice in 2024. But during its last meeting in December, its governor Kazuo Ueda spoke of a prolonged pause in monetary policy tightening, in the face of climate of economic uncertainty.

In the United States, the central bank (Fed) is now only considering two interest rate cuts this year, compared to four previously projected.

Analysts believe that the European Central Bank (ECB) should reduce its rates at a more sustained pace than that of the Fed, given the weak economic growth in the euro zone, where inflation is moving close to the target of 2% set by the ECB. Concerning the British central bank (BoE), the market still projects two to three rate cuts in 2025.