As German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrats prepare to enter into negotiations with the Social Democrat party some observers believe that the two sides may not reach a consensus to form a new government until December or even later.
On Sunday the SPD agreed to begin talks with Merkel’s side after it laid out some essential conditions that will have to be agreed upon. The biggest issue looks set to be the implementation of a national minimum wage. The negotiations are due to begin in earnest on October 23rd.
“Now comes the hard part. We’re ready to compromise, but we expect the same from the SPD” said Volker Bouffier, the Christian Democratic premier in the western German state of Hesse.
Elsewhere in the Eurozone came the release of positive data for struggling Italy. In an Istat report, new industrial orders in the Mediterranean nation leapt to 2% in September up from the 0.5% recorded in the previous month and smashing economist forecasts for a decline to -0.3%.
The single currency began the morning little changed against most of its peers before being weakened in the afternoon following the release of the latest Existing home sales data out of the USA. The Euro also edged lower against the Dollar as the ‘Greenback’ firmed up ahead of Tuesday’s U.S. jobs report for September, and amid speculation over whether the Federal Reserve will delay plans to taper stimulus.
The next major piece of data due for the Euro will be released on Wednesday in the form of the Eurozone Consumer confidence report for October.
Euro (EUR) Exchange Rates
As of 16:00 pm GMT
The Euro/US Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.3677
The Euro/Pound Sterling Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.8459
The Euro/Australian Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.4142
The Euro/ New Zealand Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.6137
The Euro/ Canadian Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.4086
The Euro/ Japanese Yen Rate Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 134.1514
The Euro/Swiss Franc Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.2353
The Pound Sterling/ Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.1821
The US Dollar/Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.7311
The Australian Dollar/Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.7071
The New Zealand Dollar/Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.6196
The Canadian Dollar/Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.7099
Swiss Franc/Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.8095
