The euro fought back against the broadly weaker dollar on Tuesday, but gave back its early gains in thin trade.
Offices in New York were staffed by skeleton crews on Monday, and with many traders unable to get back to the Big Apple due lingering travel problems, volumes have been light again on Tuesday.
With little economic news and a number of markets remaining closed for Christmas/Boxing Day break, there were few catalysts for the stalwarts looking to make their final trades of 2010.
Traders betting the Europe may get its sovereign debt problems under contrail in 2011 gave the euro a marginal boost today.
Still, with growth prospects dim on the periphery of the euro zone, the euro has been unable to sustain any positive momentum in December.
The French economy expanded less than initially estimated in the third quarter, a detailed report from statistical office Insee showed Tuesday.
Gross domestic product, or GDP, rose 0.3% sequentially during the July to September period. This represented a downward revision from the 0.4% growth reported on November 12.
The euro rose to a weekly high of $1.3275 in very early dealing versus the dollar, but slipped back to $1.3200 before the opening bell on Wall Street. The pair has been bouncing around that mark for the past month.
The euro dropped to its lowest since September versus the yen, hitting Y108.10. In August, the euro hit a 9-year low of 105.41.
In economic news from the US, Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index fell 1.3 percent in October from September, with all cities reporting monthly declines.
For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com
June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.