Euro Weakens As Putin Mobilizes Russian Troops For Invasion Of Ukraine

(RTTNews) - The euro lost ground against its key counterparts on Wednesday, as President Vladimir Putin ordered to partially mobilise troops in Russia and warned that if West continued its "nuclear blackmail" Moscow would respond with all available means" to defend its territory.

Putin announced partial mobilisation of Russian citizens, signing a decree to call up 300,000 additional personnel to serve in the military operation in Ukraine.

"In its aggressive anti-Russian policy the west has crossed all lines," the Russian President said.

The Russian-occupied regions of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia are set to hold referendums at the end of this week.

Later in the day, the U.S. Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates by 75 basis points for the third consecutive meeting to control inflation.

The euro touched a 6-day low of 0.9534 against the franc. At yesterday's trading close, the pair was quoted at 0.9604.

The euro was down against the pound, at a 5-day low of 0.8719. The currency is likely to find support around the 0.85 level.

The euro depreciated to 0.9885 against the greenback and 141.92 against the yen, its lowest levels since September 7. The euro is seen finding support around 0.96 against the greenback and 139.00 against the yen.

The euro declined to a 6-day low of 1.4841 against the aussie and a 5-day low of 1.3237 against the loonie, down from its early highs of 1.4949 and 1.3335, respectively. The next possible support for the euro is seen around 1.45 against the aussie and 1.31 against the loonie.

The euro edged down to 1.6810 against the kiwi, from a high of 1.6931 hit at 12:45 am ET. Should the euro falls further, it is likely to face support around the 1.66 region.

Looking ahead, U.S. existing home sales for August will be published in the New York session.

At 2:00 pm ET, the Fed announces its decision on interest rate. The central bank is expected to raise the target range for the federal funds rate by 75 basis points to 3.00 percent - 3.25 percent.