Euro Finds Little Support from Germany's First Steps towards a Stimulus Exit, Rising

It seems that the G20 meeting has inspired some nations to announce the initial steps to an exit strategy. Before the Federal Reserve announced the reductions to its emergency programs, Germany’s Federal Finance Agency announced that it was reducing its proposed issuance of debt through the fourth quarter from 75 billion euros to 59 billion euros.

The group said the change is in response to “improved funding conditions.” This is not a definitive move for an extensive exit strategy; but it nonetheless suggests the government is confident enough to take the first steps. In other news, the German IFO business sentiment survey showed a pickup in sentiment through September – though it was a smaller increase than the official consensus was calling for. Nonetheless, the headline reading rose to a one-year high of 91.3 while the expectations component rose a ninth consecutive month. More importantly, even the lagging current conditions data saw its fourth increase.