Demand for euro puts surges as crisis deepens

A sudden depreciation in the euro last week, coupled with an increasingly grim outlook for the single currency, has led to heightened demand for put option strategies from investors wanting to hedge further falls in the euro and speculators betting on depreciation, according to options traders.

Following the downgrade of Italy's credit rating by Standard & Poor's on September 20 and the US Federal Reserve's announcement on September 21 that it would buy $400 billion of long-dated Treasuries, EUR