Forex - EUR/USD off 1-month highs as markets digest ECB, Draghi

Investing.com - Investing.com - The euro pulled away from one-month highs against the U.S. dollar on Friday, as markets digested the European Central Bank's most recent policy decision and comments by ECB President Mario Draghi.

EUR/USD slipped 0.16% to 1.1161, pulling away from the previous session's one-month peak of 1.1217.

The euro initially weakened after the ECB cut interest rates across the euro zone to new record lows and boosted its quantitative easing program on Thursday.

The ECB wrong footed markets by cutting its benchmark interest rate to a record-low of zero from 0.05%. Market watchers had been expecting no change.

The central bank also cut the deposit facility rate deeper into negative territory, to minus 0.4% and cut the marginal lending rate cut to 0.25% from 0.30%.

In addition, the ECB boosted its quantitative easing program by €20 billion per month to €80 billion, starting in April.

But the euro rebounded after Draghi said the ECB did not anticipate that it will be necessary to reduce interest rates further, but added that this could change.

Meanwhile, the greenback found some support after the U.S. Department of Labor said on Thursday that the number of individuals filing for initial jobless benefits in the week ending March 5 decreased by 18,000 to 259,000 from the previous week's total of 277,000.

Analysts expected jobless claims to fall by 2,000 to 275,000 last week.

The euro was also lower against the pound, with EUR/GBP edging down 0.14% to 0.7816.