EUR/USD extends its downside below 1.0630, focus on ECB’s Lagarde speech

• EUR/USD remains on the defensive around 1.0615 in Wednesday’s early Asian session. 
• Fed’s Powell said it’s appropriate to allow restrictive policy to continue to work, given the strength of the labor market. 
• ECB’s Lagarde noted the central bank remains on course to cut rates in the near term, subject to any major shocks.

The EUR/USD pair extends its downside near 1.0620, bouncing off the Year-To-Date (YTD) low of 1.0600 during the early Asian session on Wednesday. However, the hawkish comments from the Federal Reserve (Fed) officials and the safe-haven flows might boost the US Dollar (USD) and cap the upside of EUR/USD in the near term. 

On Tuesday, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said that the US economy’s performance has been quite robust. Powell further stated that recent data indicates a lack of significant progress on inflation this year and it will take “longer than expected” to achieve the confidence that inflation will get down to the 2% target. A hawkish tilt by Fed’s Powell provides some support to the Greenback and drags the EUR/USD pair lower. 

About the data, Housing Starts in the US fell 14.7% in March to 1.32 million units from the previous reading of a 12.7% increase (revised from 10.7%). The US Building Permits dropped 4.3% from a rising 2.3% (revised from 1.9%) in February. Finally, Industrial Production rose 0.4% MoM in March, compared to the 0.4% increase recorded in February, in line with market expectation.

Across the pond, there is growing speculation that the European Central Bank (ECB) will start lowering interest rates in June due to a weak Eurozone economic outlook and cooling core inflationary pressures. ECB President Christine Lagarde said on Tuesday that the central bank remains on course to cut interest rates in the near term, subject to any major shocks. Lagarde added that the ECB will closely monitor oil prices amid the rising tensions in the Middle East. Later on Wednesday, the Eurozone Harmonized Index of Consumer Prices (HICP) for March will be due. Also, the ECB’s Cipollone, Schnabel and President Lagarde are set to speak.