In the early hours of Thursday, April 13th, the US dollar fell, influenced by the release of American data showing slower inflation than expected. Investor and analyst forecasts indicate that the Federal Reserve will end its monetary tightening policy after raising interest rates next month. The US dollar index fell by 0.03% against six major currencies to 101.44. The euro rose by 0.05% to $1.0994 after approaching a two-month high at 1.1005.

The Japanese yen fell to 133.20 against the US dollar, while the British pound rose to 1.2486, an increase of 0.4% during the session. US consumer prices rose 0.1% last month after rising 0.4% in February. Meanwhile, the British economy is still struggling.

Slowing inflation in Germany

The German Federal Statistical Office has revealed a decrease in the inflation rate in the country to 1.4% in March on an annual basis. Although the result is higher than the 2% target set by the European Central Bank, some investors and analysts are optimistic, seeing it as a sign of global inflation slowing down. Energy prices recorded a significant decline, dropping from 19.1% in February to 3.5% in March. In contrast, food prices increased at a faster pace in March with a rate of 22.3%, and the inflation rate of services rose to 4.8% in March, up from 4.7% in February.

UK economy fails to grow

Official government data has revealed that the UK economy actually failed to grow as expected in February, as strikes by public sector workers impacted production. The Office for National Statistics confirmed that there was no change in the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) on a monthly basis in February.

The UK Statistics Authority revised up January’s monthly growth rate from 0.3% to 0.4%, meaning the UK economy would need to contract by 0.6% in March for there to be a contraction in the first quarter of the current year.

UK Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, said the figures revealed that economic performance had been stronger than believed.