Pound, Euro Drop As Global Growth Worries Weigh

(RTTNews) - The pound and the euro fell against their major counterparts in the European session on Wednesday, as risk sentiment worsened amid an energy crisis in Europe and concerns over a slowdown in the global economic growth.

The Jackson Hole Economic Symposium will kick off tomorrow, with Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell speaking on Friday.

Investors will be watching Powell's speech for clues on the path of future rate hikes. Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari said that inflation is much more embedded at a much higher level than the policy makers or markets appreciate and an aggressive stance is needed to bring it back down.

Russian energy major Gazprom will halt natural gas supplies to Europe for three days at the end of the month for maintenance, worsening the energy crisis in the continent.

The pound dropped to 160.83 against the yen and 0.8436 against the euro, off an early high of 161.89 and a 1-week high of 0.8408, respectively. The next possible support for the pound is seen around 156.00 against the yen and 0.86 against the euro.

The pound slipped to 1.1768 against the dollar and 1.1340 against the franc, down from its early highs of 1.1838 and 1.1416, respectively. The currency is likely to find downside target levels around 1.15 against the dollar and 1.11 against the franc.

The euro was down at 0.9915 against the greenback. It retreated to 1.6029 against the kiwi, from its Asian session's high of 1.6100. The euro is seen finding support around 0.96 against the greenback and 1.58 against the kiwi.

The euro touched 135.51 against the yen, its lowest level since August 16. If the currency slides further, 132.00 is possibly seen as its next support level.

The euro fell to 0.9558 against the franc, a few pips short of a 7-1/2-year low of 0.9553 it touched on Tuesday. It had ended yesterday's deals at 0.9611.

Against the loonie and the aussie, the euro dipped to a 9-1/2-year low of 1.2888 and a 4-1/2-month low of 1.4359, respectively. On the downside, 1.26 and 1.41 are possibly seen as its next support levels against the loonie and the aussie, respectively.

Looking ahead, U.S. pending home sales for July are due in the New York session.