The Coming Week in Europe: A Look at Euro, Earnings

BERLIN -- It's tough to avoid the euro's plight these days in Europe, because even when the battered currency actually appears on the mend, something happens to show everybody just how far it has fallen.

Having lost some 30% vs. the U.S. dollar since its inception in 1999, the euro began a modest rebound last week after hitting all-time lows under $0.83 a fortnight ago.

In an attempt to strengthen the currency's recent recovery, the European Central Bank intervened repeatedly in the foreign exchange markets Friday. After the interventions, the euro traded higher at $0.8629. Unlike the coordinated intervention with the U.S. Federal Reserve and Bank of Japan in September, the ECB acted alone this time, which means the euro is sure to be on not just foreign exchange traders' minds in the coming week. ...