Euro falls as weak eurozone inflation puts pressure on ECB

Inflation in the eurozone was stuck at 0.1% in November missing analyst expectations and remaining far below the European Central Bank's inflation target of below, but close to, 2%. Analysts had expected consumer prices to have risen 0.2%-0.3% last month, which would have been an improvement on the 0.1% recorded in October. The weak print is likely to add more pressure on the European Central Bank to announce more stimulus measures at its meeting on Thursday, in its battle to fight off deflation fears. Ahead of the preliminary inflation data, economists were already widely expecting the central bank to extend its asset purchases beyond Sept. 2016 and cut the deposit rate. The euro fell to an intraday low of $1.0591 after the release, while the Stoxx Europe 600 index rose 0.6% to 386.33.

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