The Czech koruna strengthened to its highest levels against the euro and the dollar since March when the coronavirus struck Europe in the middle of March. The currency ended the day on Wednesday at CZK 26.38 per euro, while a dollar cost just CZK 22.97. While the koruna has been strengthening slowly since the beginning of July, it jumped suddenly at the announcement of an agreement between EU leaders on an enormous support package for countries hit the hardest by the pandemic. That news combined with macroeconomic data from June to make the Czech currency more attractive, especially the inflation figures, which came in at a surprisingly high 3.3 percent. This is causing currency traders to question whether the Czech National Bank will be able to stick to its current interest rate strategy. In addition, positive news from three pharmaceutical companies that their attempts to develop a vaccine against Covid-19 is leading to optimism that an end to the crisis could be in sight.
