Euro May Stay Rangebound Vs Dollar Before ECB, Fed Meetings

0911 GMT – The euro is likely to remain rangebound versus the dollar until the Federal Reserve and European Central Bank hold their next meetings, Commerzbank says. The market is in a “standby-position” at present as it awaits for more clarity on when the Fed and ECB will reach peak interest rates and the timing of rate cuts, Commerzbank currency analyst Antje Praefcke says in a note. “The issue there is that more detailed information on this matter will only become available in early May when the ECB board and FOMC will convene for their next meetings.” That means EUR/USD may be comfortable in the current range of 1.0920-1.1070 for now, Praefcke says. EUR/USD falls 0.1% to 1.0960. (renae.dyer@wsj.com)

Sterling’s Gains After UK Inflation Data May Remain Limited

0834 GMT – Sterling rises on the prospect of the Bank of England raising interest rates further in May after Wednesday’s higher-than-expected U.K. inflation data but the currency’s gains may remain limited, MUFG Bank says. Higher short-term Treasury yields, which are supporting the dollar, will curtail sterling’s strength, MUFG analyst Derek Halpenny says in a note. The possibility of a 50 basis points rate rise by the European Central Bank “will also limit GBP strength versus EUR although technically EUR/GBP is beginning to look like a move lower is plausible.” GBP/USD rises 0.1% to 1.2441 and EUR/GBP falls 0.3% to 0.8804. U.K. annual inflation fell to 10.1% in March from 10.4% in February, above the 9.8% expected by analysts in a WSJ survey. (renae.dyer@wsj.com)