German Retail Sales Comes Up Short, Sinking the EUR

It was a quieter day on the economic data front. From the Eurozone, German retail sales figures were in focus.

In April, retail sales fell by 5.5%, month-on-month, partially reversing a 7.7% jump from March. Economists had forecast a more modest 2.0% decline.

According to Destatis,

• The decline in April was attributed to the federal emergency brake in the 2^nd half of April and the Easter business in March.
• Compared with the same month a year earlier, retail sales were up by 4.4%, coming up short of a forecasted 10.1% increase. In March, retail sales had been up by 11.0%, year-on-year.

Market Impact

Ahead of today’s numbers the EUR had risen to a pre-stat high and current day high $1.22267 before easing back.

In response to today’s stats, the EUR struck a post-stat high $1.22180 before sliding to a post-stat and current day low $1.21794.

At the time of writing, the EUR was down by 0.20% to $1.21883.

Next Up

ECB President Lagarde is scheduled to speak late in the day. Expect any comments on monetary policy and the economic outlook to influence.