Breaking: EUR/USD cracks 1.0500, hits the lowest since January 2017

• EUR/USD is flirting with five-year lows, the downside bias remains intact
• The US dollar remains elevated following the USD/JPY upsurge.  
• EU-Russia energy crisis eyed ahead of German inflation, US GDP.

EUR/USD is trading below 1.0500, sitting at the lowest level since January 2017, as bears look to extend the losing streak into the sixth straight day this Thursday.

The US dollar strength remains the dominant underlying theme, which continues to exert bearish pressure on the EUR/USD pair. The safe-haven dollar remains attractive in times of growing concerns over global growth amidst China’s lockdowns and aggressive Fed rate hike bets.

The latest leg higher in the greenback, however, is triggered by the surge in USD/JPY on the Bank of Japan’s (BOJ) decision to stick with its ultra-loose monetary policy decision, despite a weaker yen and rising inflation.

EU-Russia energy crisis in focus

On the euro side of the story, the Financial Times (FT) reported that the European Union (EU) energy producers in Germany, Austria, Hungary and Slovakia are preparing to comply with a new payment system for Russian gas sought by the Kremlin.

Tensions surrounding the EU-Russia energy crisis have had a significant downside impact on the euro a day before, accentuating the decline in EUR/USD to five-year lows near 1.0510.

The downside remains compelling for the pair, as investors continue ignoring the ECB’s hawkish pivot amid unrelenting US dollar strength and aggressive Fed tightening calls.

It’s a busy calendar ahead, as EUR traders watch out for the German Preliminary Inflation data following a bunch of sentiment reports from the bloc. The main event risk for Thursday remains the US Q1 advance GDP release, which is likely to show slowing growth in the world’s biggest economy.

EUR/USD Technical levels to watch