Euro Advances As German Business Confidence Tops Expectations

The euro climbed against its major counterparts in the early European session on Monday, as a data showed that Germany's business confidence rose more than forecast in September.

Survey data from Mannheim-based Ifo institute showed that the business sentiment index came in at 103.7 in September, up from forecasts of 103.2.

The August reading was revised up to 103.9, from the previous figure of 103.8.

The current assessment indicator stood at 106.4 in September versus revised 106.5 a month ago. Nonetheless, the score was above the forecast of 106.

At the same time, the expectations index came in at 101.0 in September, down from 101.3, but above the forecast of 100.5.

Investors awaited the much anticipated FOMC decision on Wednesday, which is expected to raise interest rates by another quarter point.

The accompanying statement is likely to attract considerable attention along with Fed Chairman Jerome Powell's press conference as traders attempt to gauge the outlook for further rate hikes.

Meanwhile, European shares fell on trade concerns as Beijing cancelled planned talks with the Washington and a new round of U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods kicked in, triggering fears of a protracted trade dispute between the world's two largest economies.

The currency held steady against its major counterparts in the Asian session.

The euro edged up to 132.66 against the yen and 1.1773 against the greenback, from its early 4-day lows of 131.90 and 1.1724, respectively. If the euro rises further, 135.00 and 1.19 are likely seen as its next resistance levels against the yen and the greenback, respectively.

The single currency firmed to a 4-day high of 1.7654 against the kiwi, 6-day highs of 1.5231 against the loonie and 1.6182 against the aussie, coming off from its early lows of 1.7567, 1.5160 and 1.6134, respectively. The euro is likely to find resistance around 1.79 against the kiwi, 1.54 against the loonie and 1.63 against the aussie.

Reversing from an early low of 1.1250 against the franc, the euro rose to 1.1288. The next possible resistance for the euro is seen around the 1.16 level.

The common currency bounced off to 0.8975 against the pound, from a low of 0.8955 seen at 3:40 am ET. The euro is seen challenging resistance around the 0.91 level.

Looking ahead, at 8:30 am ET, Canada wholesale sales for July are set for release.