EUR/AUD retreats as ECB is expected to cut rates by 25 bps

The EUR/AUD currency pair edged lower on Thursday after Australian employment data and as focus sets on the outcome of the European Central Bank’s policy meeting later today.

The European Central Bank is largely expected to lower its main refinancing operations rate by 25 basis points to 3.40% at its October policy meeting, while its deposit facility rate is expected to be reduced to 3.25% from 3.50% currently.

The ECB has gained more confidence that inflation would return to target by the end of 2025, the minutes from the bank’s September meeting showed.

Yet, volatility is expected to continue by the end of this year, with relatively high core inflation remaining.

The ECB also highlighted that a gradual reduction in interest rates would be appropriate in case incoming data came in line with policy makers’ projections.

Market players will be closely watching ECB President Christine Lagarde’s press conference for any hints regarding future interest rate trajectory.

Meanwhile, on the macro data front, employment in Australia rose by 64,100 to a record level of 14.52 million in September, far exceeding market consensus.

At the same time, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate held steady at 4.1% in September, as the number of unemployed persons decreased by 9,200 to 615,700.

As of 6:58 GMT on Thursday the EUR/AUD currency pair was edging down 0.32% to trade at 1.6236.

The Forex pair touched an intraday low of 1.6189, also a one-week low, following the release of the Australian employment figures.