Euro's sharp rise attracts the attention of the US Treasury Secretary, institutions increase their bets on the European Central Bank cutting interest rates.

The rapid appreciation of the Euro has caught the attention of officials on both sides of the Atlantic, with no signs of slowing down, intensifying expectations of further interest rate cuts by the European Central Bank. JPMorgan Chase, BNP Paribas, and Danske Bank are forecasting that by the end of the year, 1 Euro could be exchanged for 1.20 US dollars or even more, a stark difference from some analysts' expectations of parity three months ago. Just this month, traders have increased their bets on an interest rate cut by the European Central Bank by about 0.5 percentage points for the year. ECB President Lagarde has called the rise in the Euro "counterintuitive," and even US Treasury Secretary Mnuchin spoke out on April 28, suggesting that Europe could further lower interest rates to curb the strength of its currency.