Euro Climbs Amid ECB Rate Hike Prospects

The euro held firm against its major counterparts in the European session on Monday, as German inflation reached a record high in May, reinforcing hopes for a rate hike by the European Central Bank in July.

Preliminary figures from Destatis showed that German consumer inflation accelerated at a faster-than-expected pace in May to reach its highest level in nearly half a century.

Consumer prices rose 7.9 percent year-over-year in May, faster than the 7.4 percent rise in April. Economists had expected inflation to rise to 7.6 percent.

This was the highest inflation rate since the winter of 1973-74, when mineral oil prices rose sharply as a result of the first oil crisis.

The euro was further supported by a weakness in the U.S. dollar as Friday's data lessened inflation fears and fueled hopes that the Federal Reserve is likely to tighten policy at a slower pace.

German bond yields rose, with the yield on the 10-year German bund reaching 1.058 percent.

The euro moved up to 1.0781 against the greenback, its strongest level since April 25. It was up against the yen, at near a 3-week high of 137.50. If the euro continues its rise, 1.10 and 139.00 are possibly seen as its next resistance levels against the greenback and the yen, respectively. The euro touched a 6-day high of 1.0336 against the franc and a 4-day high of 0.8528 against the pound, rebounding from its prior lows of 1.0261 and 0.8484, respectively. The euro is likely to find resistance around 1.05 against the franc and 0.88 against the pound.

The euro ticked up to 1.6474 against the kiwi and 1.5011 against the aussie, up from a previous low of 1.6392 and a 1-week low of 1.4958, respectively. The next possible resistance for the euro is seen around 1.52 against the kiwi and 1.52 against the aussie.

In contrast, the euro was lower against the loonie, at a 6-day low of 1.3628. The euro is seen facing support around the 1.34 level.