EUR/USD knocks back after a firm rally as safe-haven bids step up

The EUR/USD drove back into the high side near 1.0930 on Wednesday after markets shrugged off a miss for pan-European Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) figures before a follow-up beat in US PMIs sent risk appetite skidding back into the safe havens. The pair gained over a full percent bottom-to-top climbing from the previous day’s low of 1.0821 before getting pushed back into a familiar technical level near 1.0900.

European PMIs broadly printed in the sub-50.0 region, suggesting the broader euro area economy remains in contraction territory, and nearly all missed market expectations with the exception of a single bright spot in the manufacturing sector. Meanwhile, US PMIs broadly beat the Street, with a climb to multi-month highs in both manufactured goods and the service sector. EUR/USD finds itself getting dumped back into the 1.0900 handle near the 200-hour Simple Moving Average (SMA) on Wednesday as the pair struggles to find real momentum, keeping the pair pinned to near-term technical levels amidst a broader push into mid-term consolidation. A widening consolidation range is highlighting the increased volatility in the EUR/USD despite keeping the pair close to long-term support near 1.0850. Daily candlesticks have the EUR/USD stuck in the middle of a consolidation pattern between the 50-day and 200-day SMAs at 1.0920 and 1.0850, respectively. The Euro-Dollar pair is set to drift until a meaningful push develops in either direction.