The euro consolidated gains above $1.16, hovering near its strongest level in over a month, as the US dollar weakened on softer jobs data. The JOLTS report showed US job openings fell by 176,000 to 7.18 million in July, the lowest since September 2024 and below expectations of 7.4 million, reinforcing bets on Federal Reserve rate cuts in September. In Europe, fiscal concerns are rising amid expectations of higher defense spending and increased German infrastructure investment, while attention also turns to French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou’s September 8 confidence vote. Meanwhile, eurozone inflation accelerated to 2.1% in August, slightly above forecasts and the ECB’s 2% target, bolstering expectations the central bank will leave interest rates unchanged at next week’s meeting.