The statement was “not a firm promise, it is a strong hint that they may move,” Holger Schmieding, chief economist at Berenberg, told Bloomberg. “He has the option of not moving, but then he’d have to explain in March that the situation hasn’t deteriorated.”
Any additional ECB action could also depress the euro currency. On Thursday, the CurrencyShares Euro Currency Trust (NYSEArca: FXE) dipped 0.1% as the euro fell weakened to $1.0882.
Given the pressure on the euro currency and potential stimulus that would help bolster growth, investors should take a look at euro-currency hedged ETFs, which diminish the negative effects of a stronger dollar or weaker euro currency. On Thursday, the Deutsche X-trackers MSCI EMU Hedged Equity ETF (NYSEArca: DBEZ) was up 0.7%, iShares Currency Hedged MSCI EMU ETF (NYSEArca: HEZU) rose 1.1% and WisdomTree Europe Hedged Equity Fund (NYSEArca: HEDJ) gained 1.2%.
Max Chen contributed to this article.