The euro rose in European trading on Friday against a basket of global currencies, resuming the gains that paused yesterday against the US dollar. The currency is now approaching a seven-week high and heading toward a second consecutive weekly advance.

This week’s data from the eurozone showed a clear expansion in business activity during November, signaling an acceleration in economic growth through the fourth quarter. The improvement in Europe’s outlook is boosting market confidence in the region’s ability to exit its phase of economic weakness and is paving the way for potentially more hawkish decisions from the European Central Bank in upcoming meetings.

Price Overview

• EUR/USD Today: The euro climbed 0.1% to 1.1656, from an opening at 1.1644, after touching a low of 1.1674.

• The euro ended yesterday down 0.25% against the dollar — its first loss in four days — as investors booked profits following a run-up to a six-week high at 1.1682 earlier in the session.

Weekly Trading

So far this week — which concludes with today’s settlement — the euro is up more than 0.5% against the US dollar, putting it on track to achieve a second straight weekly gain.

Positive Data

Wednesday’s figures showed eurozone business activity rising at its fastest pace in two and a half years during November, with a strong services sector offsetting relative weakness in manufacturing.

Views and Analysis

Steve Englander, head of global FX research at Standard Chartered in New York, said: “We’ve been seeing this gradual improvement in Europe’s data, and I think the market is finally starting to take notice.”

He added that optimism over a potential end to the Russia–Ukraine war is also supporting gains in many European currencies, particularly the euro and the British pound.

Christine Lagarde

In a session before the European Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs, ECB President Christine Lagarde said on Wednesday that Europe’s economy is showing signs of recovery: household spending has increased, and the labor market remains resilient — both contributing to improved activity despite ongoing challenges.

Lagarde emphasized that core inflation indicators remain aligned with the ECB’s 2% medium-term target and is expected to stay near that level in the coming months.

European Interest Rates

• This week’s data showed an unexpected rise in headline inflation across the eurozone for November, highlighting persistent price pressures for the ECB.

• Following the inflation release, money-market pricing for a 25-basis-point ECB rate cut in December fell sharply from 25% to just 5%.

• Reuters sources indicated the ECB is likely to hold rates steady in its December meeting.

• Investors await additional eurozone economic data ahead of the December 17–18 meeting to reassess these expectations.

The Japanese yen rose in Asian trading on Friday against a basket of major and minor currencies, extending gains for a third consecutive session against the US dollar. The currency is now trading near a two-week high and is on track to secure another weekly gain — its largest weekly advance since September — supported by growing expectations of an interest-rate hike in Japan later this month.

More hawkish remarks from Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda opened the door to near-term policy normalization, coinciding with Reuters reports citing government sources that the central bank is likely to raise rates in December.

Price Overview

• USD/JPY Today: The dollar fell about 0.2% against the yen to 154.80¥, from an opening level of 155.05, after touching a high of 155.23.

• The yen ended Thursday up 0.1% against the dollar, marking a second straight daily gain and reaching a two-week high of 154.51, supported by hopes that the interest-rate gap between Japan and the US will narrow.

Weekly Trading

So far this week — which concludes with today’s settlement — the Japanese yen is up roughly 0.85% against the US dollar, on track for a second consecutive weekly gain and its strongest weekly performance since late September.

Kazuo Ueda

On Monday, BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda offered a more optimistic outlook for Japan’s economy, saying the central bank will weigh the pros and cons of raising interest rates at its upcoming December policy meeting.

Japanese Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama said on Friday, in response to a question on monetary policy: since taking office in October, communication with Governor Ueda has been very strong. She added that the specifics of monetary operations fall strictly under the BOJ’s authority.

Views and Analysis

Christopher Wong, FX strategist at OCBC, said: “This looks like pre-positioning for a possible rate hike. A December or January move now seems highly plausible.”

He added: “The key question is whether this will be a one-and-done increase followed by another long pause. A sustained recovery in the yen will likely require stronger forward guidance from the BOJ.”

Japanese Interest Rates

• Reuters sources said the BOJ is preparing markets for a potential rate hike in December, returning to a more hawkish tone as concerns about the yen’s sharp decline re-emerge and political pressure to keep rates low fades.

• Three government officials told Reuters the BOJ will *likely* raise interest rates this month.

• Market pricing currently assigns roughly a 70% probability of a 25-basis-point rate hike at the December meeting.

• To refine these expectations, investors are awaiting further Japanese data on inflation, unemployment, and wage growth.

The US dollar rose against most major currencies on Thursday following economic data that strengthened expectations the Federal Reserve will likely cut interest rates at its meeting next week.

Government figures released today showed that initial jobless claims fell by 27,000 to 191,000 last week, compared with expectations of 220,000.

According to Challenger, Gray & Christmas, announced job cuts in the US totaled 71.3 thousand in November.

Markets now await Friday’s release of the Personal Consumption Expenditures Index, the Fed’s preferred gauge of inflation.

Based on CME Group’s FedWatch Tool, expectations point to nearly an 89% probability of a rate cut at the upcoming meeting.

In trading, the dollar index edged higher by less than 0.1% to 98.9 points at 18:42 GMT, after hitting a high of 99.03 and a low of 98.7.

Australian Dollar

The Australian dollar rose 0.2% against its US counterpart to 0.6616 at 18:53 GMT.

Canadian Dollar

The Canadian dollar held steady at 0.7168 against the US dollar at 18:53 GMT.

Artificial intelligence has rapidly emerged as one of the defining global forces of our era. As a core driver of the fourth industrial revolution, it is increasingly viewed as a strategic tool to tackle major challenges such as climate change and pollution. Energy companies are deploying AI to digitize records, analyze massive geological datasets, and identify early-warning signs of operational issues — from equipment overuse to pipeline corrosion.

AI now plays a central role in seismic data analysis, well-path optimization, and advanced reservoir management, enabling higher recovery rates with lower environmental impact and fewer human errors. Companies such as AI Driller use remote, AI-driven systems to manage drilling operations across multiple rigs, while Petro AI and Tachyus build physics-based models to forecast production and optimize reservoir performance. Energy services giants Baker Hughes (NYSE:BKR) and C3.ai (NYSE:AI) rely on enterprise AI systems to predict equipment failures, and Buzz Solutions analyzes visual data to inspect and maintain power lines.

A similar transformation is unfolding across the electricity sector, where AI is redesigning operations from generation to consumption — even as AI itself drives power demand sharply higher.

AI improves demand response and energy efficiency through platforms such as Brainbox AI and Enerbrain, which autonomously reduce unnecessary energy use. Meanwhile, Uplight helps utilities incentivize efficient consumption. AI also facilitates the integration of renewable energy by analyzing huge datasets — including weather patterns — to more accurately predict solar and wind output.

In the renewable energy segment, AI enhances grid management, balances supply and demand in real time, and uses machine-learning models to predict equipment failures, thereby minimizing downtime and lowering operating costs. Envision and PowerFactors offer unified platforms for managing massive renewable fleets, while Clir and WindESCo detect under-performing wind turbines and automatically optimize blade angles and orientations for maximum energy capture. SkySpecs uses AI-powered autonomous drones to perform automated turbine inspections, and Form Energy is developing long-duration storage solutions to address renewable intermittency.

AI has also become fundamental to building modern smart grids by enhancing visibility, managing congestion, and preventing outages. Kraken Technologies provides the AI “brain” for next-generation grids, balancing intermittent renewable supply with real-time demand, coordinating millions of decentralized energy assets, and automating operations to maximize efficiency and system stability.

WeaveGrid and Camus Energy help utilities integrate electric vehicles and other distributed energy resources without overloading the grid. WeaveGrid’s EV-specific software optimizes charging schedules to align with grid capacity and renewable availability, while Camus Energy uses machine learning to deliver highly accurate demand and power-flow forecasts — speeding up complex grid-physics computations and improving stability during peak EV charging.

AI is also redefining carbon-emissions management and ESG compliance by centralizing data, streamlining processes, monitoring supply chains, and improving reporting accuracy. Companies can now track emissions in real time, run predictive models, and automate ESG reporting — including anomaly detection and regulatory navigation.

CarbonChain and Watershed use AI and machine learning to deliver detailed, scalable emissions measurement — especially for supply-chain (Scope 3) emissions. CarbonChain automates large-scale supply-chain data ingestion and analysis to produce audit-ready emissions reports. Watershed’s enterprise sustainability platform uses AI extensively to automate data collection and improve accuracy. Its Product Footprints tool analyzes every purchased item — breaking it down into raw materials, manufacturing steps, and transportation — producing granular emissions estimates within minutes.

Yet the rise of AI has carried a significant cost: soaring electricity consumption in states hosting large clusters of AI data centers. Tech giants and AI labs are building enormous data-center campuses that can each consume up to a gigawatt of power — enough to supply more than 800,000 homes. Unsurprisingly, the states with the heaviest concentration of these energy-hungry sites are also experiencing some of the steepest increases in electricity prices.

Virginia hosts 666 data centers — the highest number in the US — and residential electricity prices in the state surged 13% in August from a year earlier, the second-largest increase nationwide. Illinois, home to 244 data centers, saw prices rise 15.8%, the highest in the country.

Predictably, political backlash is rising. Several lawmakers have criticized the Trump administration for striking private deals with major tech companies and shifting the burden of data-center energy costs onto consumers. As a result, the industry is increasingly exploring the model pioneered by Oklo (NYSE:OKLO), in which data centers generate their own dedicated power supply — reducing strain on local grids and shielding consumers from additional costs.