currecncy insight

Sterling dips in early trade

Silvana Tenreyro, a member of the Bank of England’s rate-setting committee, says she thinks negative interest rates work well. Whether getting no yield or paying a bank to hold your deposits has any effect is a highly contentious debate, but this influential LSE Professor’s comments seem to have unnerved traders
currecncy insight

Sterling finds its feet

The Sterling – US Dollar rate has had a turbulent week, testing $1.39 on Monday and dropping to nearly $1.37 yesterday. It sits at $1.32770 this morning after a healthy rise in the RICS house price index. We will get the UK construction sector PMI later this morning and the US jobless claims numbers this afternoon, so the volatility isn’t over.
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GBPEUR declines due to Brexit uncertainties and the UK’s credit rating

The Pound drops almost 1% against a host of major currencies overnight as technical support levels are in reach after a recent run of Sterling growth over the last couple of weeks. I can understand The Pound losing some of the gains against most currencies but...
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Chocolate-Fuelled Weekend Gives Sterling a Sugar Rush

A combination of supporting factors helped the GBPUSD pair regain positive traction on the first day of a new week and move back above the 1.3900 mark. GBPEUR climbed to one-year highs of 1.1770 last week as concerns grew about the economic fallout...
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USD stalled by pending home data

UK Q4 GDP was upgraded to 1.3% in the three months to December. US pending home sales data reported 10.6% contraction in February, four times as bad as the market forecast. Australia reported a 1.7% decline in home loans, a 0.8% decline in retail sales and an AUD 2.6 billion contraction in Australia’s trade balance.
currecncy insight

NZ business confidence in negative territory

A sharp drop in New Zealand Business Confidence was reported overnight. The index, published by ANZ, showed a minus 4.1 reading in March, compared to a plus 7 reading in February. That negative effect was counterbalanced by...
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Failing Hedge fund threatens global banks

News that a US hedge fund /family office faces collapse and had been trading well beyond its means sent a shock wave through financial markets yesterday. The impact on several global banks could be as large as $6 billion, and questions are being asked about how a small hedge fund...
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Short week offers plenty of reasons for volatility

Friday was an interesting one where the Pound had yet another push to EUR 1.17 but consolidated below that level rather than breakthrough. That is the 5th attempt in just over a month, and you have to feel Sterling traders will crack that level at some stage...
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UK retailers gaining optimism

UK retailers endured a tough March; worse than had been forecast, but the core level of activity was better than forecast and retailers displayed rising optimism in the CBI survey. That makes sense when non-essential retail is due to be reopened in April and with...
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Beached freighter blocking Suez Canal hikes oil price

The Pound lost a little more ground against the US Dollar yesterday despite improved purchasing managers indices in the UK. GBPUSD rate has been falling since the spike we saw towards the end of February, the EUR-USD rate has completed a similar reversal at $1.18.
currecncy insight

USD stronger on further safe haven flows

Tuesday was dominated by US Dollar strength with the GBPUSD rate below $1.37. This morning’s soft inflation data didn’t support Sterling. GBPNZD stormed up to 1.9670 overnight and is still just above 1.96 this morning. This afternoon sees the Federal Reserve Chairman’s testimony to the Joint Economic Committee in Washington...
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UK employment data boosts GBP

Monday was a combination of consolidation and mini spikes. The shock dive in the Turkish Lira’s value calmed down. Europe returned to lockdown in several areas unnerving traders and investors. New Zealand Prime Minister tries to ”tilt the balance” of the NZ housing market towards first-time buyers and curb the excesses of property speculators
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Turkish Lira drops 15% as central bank governor replaced

In a surprise move in the early hours of Saturday, President Erdogan of Turkey sacked the central bank Governor and appointed Sahap Kavcioglu...
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PM to have AstraZeneca jab as he urges public to do the same

The prime minister receives his first dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine after reassuring the public it was “safe”. Boris Johnson, 56, has urged people to get inoculated and said...
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USD strengthens on oil and Fed

The price of crude oil dropped for the fifth day in a row as US stockpiles increased. That caused the GBPUSD rate to drop. New Zealand saw a 0.9% contraction in their GDP in the year to December while Australia’s improvement in the unemployment rate to just 5.8%, driven mainly by full-time jobs was good news
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Pound recovers after rollercoaster ride

Early yesterday saw Sterling fall to multi-week lows across the board following the news that the AstraZeneca vaccine, widely used in the UK, is being suspended in several European countries. By day end, the pound was able to recover after...
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EU countries suspend AstraZeneca vaccine

Several countries suspended the AstraZeneca jab, however, the World Health Organization (WHO) said there was no link with reported side effects. Sterling markets will be keeping an eye on the Bank of England policy announcement on Thursday
currecncy insight

Sterling drops on unexpected news

Sterling has a good opportunity to test $1.40 again after Accenture reported a survey result showing that UK businesses had a greater propensity to bounce back in 2021 than most other economies; the best since 2015. GBPEUR is still hovering half a cent below the €1.17 ceiling. Other than Eurozone inflation and a German business sentiment index, this is a hollow week for EU data