Dollar bulls were ready to pounce on the euro on Thursday should the European Central Bank sound dovish on rates later in the day, given the Federal Reserve had pressed the pause button on its easing cycle overnight.

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Lending growth to businesses in the 20-nation euro zone accelerated in December, suggesting that a string of interest rate hikes have started to transmit through to the real economy, European Central Bank data showed on Tuesday.

Bank lending to firms in the 20-nation euro area picked up last month, indicating that rapid interest rate cuts have started to flow through to the real economy, despite a gloomy lending survey, European Central Bank data showed on Wednesday.

Back home, Davorija and her teammates are trying to figure out how to keep this season going as long as possible.

Pricing for short- and long-dated European and American options to buy Euros vs. U.S. dollars at a strike price of 1.0500 for quarterly maturities out to 20 years is shown below. Note that the data for US options is the lower bound on the fair value price.

Banks in the euro area tightened credit standards for companies by the most since 2023, according to the European Central Bank — dashing hopes for a quick recovery in corporate lending that could support investment.

Tuscany's bailed-out Monte dei Paschi had unexpectedly launched a 13-billion-euro all-share takeover proposal for Mediobanca.

The ECB has reinforced its push for a digital euro in response to Trump’s executive order promoting US dollar-backed stablecoins.

Sterling edged up against the dollar and fell sharply against the yen as investors rushed into safe-haven assets while shifting their focus to economic data and central bank policy meetings later this week.

Man City remained heroes of the Champions League format to the very end and it's all worked out swimmingly for UEFA with not one major casualty.

NASCAR Euro Series has announced the introduction of a major new initiative called the Rookie Challenge, set to begin in the upcoming 2025 season. This new competition format is designed to replace the previous Club Challenge, with a focus on speed and consistency through time-attack-based events.

Scandi Alliance, the TV2 and TV4 commissioning initiative, has ordered Miso Film's historical miniseries 'Royal Blood' as its first commission.