The euro extended its recent losses on Wednesday, falling to a five-year low against the dollar. The common currency dropped to $1.0515. That was the lowest level since March 2017. The two-year low marked the day before was slightly undershot. Expectations of a much tighter monetary policy in the USA have been putting pressure on the euro for a long time. This strengthens the dollar against many currencies. Added to this are the economic consequences of the Ukraine war, which many experts believe will affect Europe more than the United States. This puts an additional burden on the euro.
In response to the end of Russian gas exports to some EU countries, the European natural gas price rose by 4.5 percent to EUR 107.80 per megawatt hour. Commerzbank analyst Carsten Fritsch described the price increases as relatively moderate. After all, Poland has already received gas from Germany in the past few weeks and will receive a pipeline connection to Norwegian gas fields from autumn. In addition, it looks as if Germany will become independent of Russian oil supplies much faster than previously thought, Fritsch added. “In this way, Germany could also give up its opposition to an EU oil embargo against Russia.” The oil price fell slightly. The Brent variety from the North Sea was listed 0.2 percent lower at 104.81 dollars per barrel. An increase in US inventories and an impending fall in demand due to the new corona lockdowns in China weighed on the market, said analyst Giovanni Staunovo from the bank UBS.
The stronger dollar hurt the price of gold. The precious metal fell at the top by 1.3 percent to $ 1881.45 per troy ounce (31.1 grams). That was the lowest level in two months.