• EUR/USD appreciates despite a negative bias amid the cautious US Federal Reserve.
• Fed Chair Powell stated that the economy is not sending any signals that we need to lower rates quickly.
• The headline inflation in the Euro Area is projected to drop sharply to 2.4% in 2024, from 5.4% in 2023.

The EUR/USD pair trades around 1.0550 during Monday’s Asian trading session, hovering near its yearly low of 1.0496, which was reached on November 14. Downside risks for the pair have intensified following cautious comments from Federal Reserve (Fed) officials and stronger-than-expected US Retail Sales data, broadly supporting the US Dollar (USD).

Last week, Fed Chair Jerome Powell tempered expectations for imminent rate cuts, emphasizing the economy's resilience, a strong labor market, and persistent inflationary pressures. Powell stated, "The economy is not sending any signals that we need to be in a hurry to lower rates."

The CME FedWatch Tool indicates that markets are pricing in nearly a 60% probability of a 25-basis-point rate cut by the Fed at its December meeting.

The US Census Bureau reported on Friday that Retail Sales increased by 0.4% month-over-month in October, exceeding the market consensus of 0.3%. Additionally, the NY Empire State Manufacturing Index for November posted an unexpected surge, coming in at 31.2 compared to the anticipated 0.7 decline, signaling robust manufacturing activity.