The euro continues to struggle as the fall-out from the Cypriot bail-out continues to dominate market sentiment.
The Banks in Cyprus are due to re-open today but it is more than likely that the Cypriot government will impose a weekly limit on cash withdrawals in an attempt to prevent a bank run. The Cypriot government is also rumoured to be finalising plans to impose strict capital controls while UK security firm G4S, infamous for their role in the London Olympics are deploying 180 guards to control queues at bank branches throughout Cyprus.
Unconfirmed reports this morning also suggest that Bank of Cyprus Chairman Andreas Artemis has resigned due to differences with the central bank over the lender's recapitalisation and handling of the crisis.
This morning, consumer climate data from Germany shows that German consumer confidence remains stable although the research company, GfK noted that the “the consumer mood in Germany does not display a uniform trend”.
The data shows that while economic expectations improved slightly there is a marginal decrease in income expectations and willingness to buy.
Elsewhere, stronger than expected US data boosted risk appetite aiding high yielding currencies like the Australian dollar and hitting capital inflows to safe haven currencies like the US dollar.
Data from the US Commerce Department showed that US durable-goods orders in February rose by the most in five months to 5.7%. A S&P/Case-Shiller 20-city home price index showed that prices surged by 8.1% in the 12 months ended January, the highest annual increase since the summer of 2006.
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