Euro Down Amid German Production Data Speculation

After a last week's steady growth, the euro opened Monday morning at 1.2967. News from the European Central Bank meeting on Thursday gave the currency a much needed boost against the dollar. The currency rallied as investors seemed to believe that the worst was over in the regions financial crisis. Though the euro zone seemed to be taking strides to repair its broken economy, Bloomberg Businessweek reported Monday that some are expecting the euro to drop to $1.20 over the next 3-4 months.

While the idea of a weaker euro is certainly possible in the long run, there isn't much change expected this week, as news out of the region is likely to be scarce and uneventful. Monday could hold a bit of change for the currency, with the finance ministers from each eurozone country meeting in Brussels to discuss, among other things, Spain and Greece.

Greece is scheduled to receive another installment of its bailout money, which must be evaluated and authorized by the finance ministers. Although last week's news pointed to Greece's failure to meet the terms set for their bailout, talks at the end of the week and over the weekend have been constructive, and most are expecting the ministers to emerge with a positive statement regarding the country's austerity efforts. As finance ministers discuss Greece's fate, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has planned to visit the country for the first time since the bailout.

Also on Monday, Germany will release data about its industrial production amid rumors that it has decreased 0.6 percent over the summer months. Speculation about the actual number has put pressure on the euro and its actual release, if negative, could drive the currency even lower.