The euro halted its recent recovery on Thursday. After the common currency was able to build on its recent gains in the morning and reached its highest level since early March at $1.1185, it fell significantly in evening trading. The euro was last traded 1.1 percent lower at $1.1062. Statements by Russian President Vladimir Putin on the supply of natural gas caused uncertainty in the course of trading. While comparatively safe investments such as the US dollar were in greater demand, the euro came under selling pressure. The Japanese yen, which is also valued as a safe form of investment, was able to gain against all other important currencies in the afternoon. Effective April 1, Putin has ordered Western countries to open accounts with Gazprombank to continue receiving Russian gas. Otherwise, deliveries to “unfriendly” countries would be stopped, the Kremlin chief said on Russian state television.
It was initially unclear whether the states themselves would have to pay in rubles or whether a euro payment would be converted. The Ukraine war remains a dominant topic on the financial markets and is currently overshadowing economic data. In the eurozone, consumer prices continue to rise sharply. Inflation rates in France and Italy climbed, mainly driven by high energy prices. With the inflation rate for the euro zone, which is expected on Friday, some experts expect a value above the seven percent mark. In the USA, the situation on the labor market clouded over again somewhat. Last week, the number of weekly initial jobless claims rose more than expected.
On the commodity market, speculation about a massive release of strategic oil reserves by the USA sent the oil price plummeting.