Update: Pound to US Dollar Exchange Rate Hits New Multi-Month Lows on Strong US Data
As investors continued to digest Britain’s disappointing services results and strong US data was published, the Pound to US Dollar (GBP/USD) exchange rate continued to fall on Thursday.
At the time of writing, GBP/USD had tumbled to an interbank low of 1.35 – the pair’s worst level since early January.
The latest US trade deficit update came in lighter than expected, at $-49b rather than the forecast £-50b.
While ISM’s non-manufacturing PMI for April unexpectedly slowed to 56.8, this was still a strong figure and Markit’s final April composite PMI beat expectations at 54.9.
Pound Sterling Firms as Construction Activity Picks Up
After a rocky start to the week the Pound (GBP) appeared to finally find some support on Wednesday as the UK published its latest construction PMI.
The index revealed the construction sector bounced back last month after the ‘beast from the east’ crippled activity in March.
However with analysts warning that the fundamentals of the sector still remain weak, the better-than-expected figures failed to sustain any upward momentum in Sterling.
GBP/EUR Exchange Rate Advances as Eurozone Growth Slows
The Pound Euro (GBP/EUR) exchange rate ticked up by nearly half a cent yesterday as the pairing’s advance was accelerated by the release of the Eurozone’s latest GDP figures.
While it came as no surprise that growth in the bloc slowed at the start of 2018 following a run of modest economic data, the result still weighed on the Euro (EUR) as analysts think this may further dampen calls for the European Central Bank (ECB) to begin raising interest rates.
GBP/USD Exchange Rate Tumbles Following Fed Policy Meeting
The Pound US Dollar (GBP/USD) exchange rate initially shot higher on Wednesday thanks to the UK’s upbeat construction PMI, although the pairing’s gains proved to be short-lived due to a solid employment report from the US in the afternoon.
However it was the Federal Reserve’s latest monetary policy statement that was the main driver for the US Dollar (USD) yesterday as the bank appeared upbeat about US inflation, stoking speculation it may adopt a more aggressive stance on monetary tightening over the coming months.
GBP/CAD Exchange Rate Jumps as Oil Prices Crumble
The Pound Canadian Dollar (GBP/CAD) exchange rate enjoyed some solid gains yesterday, largely on the back of tumbling oil prices.
With crude products accounting for around 15% of exports the Canadian Dollar (CAD) was hit hard as crude benchmarks plummeted around 2% on Wednesday.
GBP/AUD Exchange Rate Slides on Impressive Australian Trade Figures
The Pound Australian Dollar (GBP/AUD) exchange rate was placed on the defensive again overnight on Wednesday as some stronger-than-expected domestic trade figures helped to propel the Australian Dollar (AUD) higher.
GBP/NZD Exchange Rate Steady as Markets Digest Fed Rate Decision
The Pound New Zealand Dollar (GBP/NZD) exchange rate remained subdued overnight on Wednesday as markets focused most of their attention on the US Dollar following the Fed rate decision.