Pound (GBP) Trading Higher Awaiting Inflation, Euro (EUR) Plummets, ?Aussie? (AUD) Stronger

Published: 13 Aug at 11 AM Tags: Euro, Dollar, Pound Sterling, America, UK, Eurozone, Australian Dollar, New Zealand Dollar, Canadian Dollar, Australia, New Zealand, USA, Canada, Germany, Russia, South Africa,

Pound (GBP)

The Pound (GBP) has made significant gains against the Euro (EUR) in the latter three days, and is presently trading awaiting the Bank of England’s (BoE) Inflation Report. The Inflation Report is hoped to bring some clarity to the BoE’s plan for interest rate hikes in the UK which has faced much speculation in the past months. Bank of England Governor Mark Carney has faced scrutiny, as his conflicting statements regarding the hikes caused frustration for many. Foreign exchange expert Lee McDarby commented: ‘Since his Mansion House speech, Carney may be quite conscious of the power of his hawkishness.’ The Pound is presently trading against the Euro at 1.2591, whilst trading at 1.6824 versus the US Dollar (USD).

Euro (EUR)

The Euro (EUR) has fallen against the Pound (GBP) in the currency market in anticipation of a hopefully upbeat statement from the Bank of England (BoE) later today. The Euro has taken a tumble against other majors also following surprisingly poor German figures this week showing a steep decline in investor’s sentiment. Expert in the field Jeremy Stretch stated: ‘The backdrop for the largest economy in Europe looks increasingly less secure.’ Wednesday however has seen the German Consumer Price Index maintain its 0.8% figure as forecast. The Euro is residing in the region of 1.3352 versus the US Dollar (USD) and 0.7937 against the Pound (GBP).

US Dollar (USD)

The US Dollar (USD) is trading lower against the Pound (GBP) on Wednesday after weeks of remaining bullish in the currency market. The USD to GBP currency pairing has reached highs of 0.5953 whilst also dipping to lows of 0.5942 so far this session. As geopolitical tensions continue to escalate having an ongoing impact on the currency market, the US is sending military advisors into Iraq. Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel commented: ‘This is not a combat boots on the ground kind of operation.’ The US Dollar (USD) is presently trading at 0.7490 versus the Euro (EUR).

Canadian Dollar (CAD)

The Canadian Dollar (CAD) is presently trading at 0.9159 versus the US Dollar (USD). Wednesday has shown that recent Canadian jobs data has been presented wrongly with revisions set to be released on Friday 15th August. The previous data suggested that only 200 Canadian job vacancies had been created, when economists had forecast 15,000 roles of employment to be made. The data agency stated: ‘An error has been detected in the processing of the Aug 8 Labour Force Survey release.’

Australian Dollar (AUD)

Wednesday sees the Australian Dollar (AUD) trading up at 0.9285 versus the US Dollar (USD), attaining highs of 0.9299—verging just below the 93 US cents threshold. The Australian Dollar has been making steady gains against the ‘Buck’ for the latter five days. The Australian Dollar has seen encouragement from the Australian Westpac Consumer Confidence Index which attained an impressive 98.5 in August indicating that Australia’s consumers are feeling optimistic. The Australian Wage Cost Index however slipped in the second quarter, only rising by 0.6%, following the first quarter’s 0.7% which economists had forecast the second quarter to attain also.

New Zealand Dollar (NZD)

The New Zealand Dollar (NZD) is presently trading at 0.8430 against the US Dollar (USD) whilst also trading at 0.9080 against its Australian counterpart the Australian Dollar (AUD). The New Zealand Dollar however has attained gains against the Euro (EUR) in the wake of highly disappointing German confidence figures; furthermore, constant geopolitical tensions remain a prominent volatility on currency market values. Bank of New Zealand representative Raiko Shareef commented that the currency market was affected by ‘concern about the West’s standoff with Russia.’ The New Zealand Dollar is presently trading at 0.6318 versus the Euro.

South African Rand (ZAR)

The South African Rand (ZAR) is awaiting influential Retail Sales figures on Wednesday, which is presently expected to rise by 0.8% month-on-month in June. The Rand has suffered volatility this year after being continually caught between strike action, which has caused political instability within South Africa. Furthermore Thursday will see the release of Mining Production figures which are likely to have a negative impact on the Rand following the six month platinum mining strike with economists forecasting a -6.5% figure. The US Dollar (USD) is presently trading against the Rand at 10.6350.
As of Wednesday, 13th August 2014, the Pound Sterling currency rates mentioned within this news item were as follows:

GBP EUR exchange rate was 1.2489, GBP USD exchange rate was 1.6691, GBP AUD exchange rate was 1.7936, GBP NZD exchange rate was 1.9678, GBP CAD exchange rate was 1.8214, GBP RUB exchange rate was 60.1266, and GBP ZAR exchange rate was 17.6523.

Latest Currency News Items:

• Euro Surges as Highly-Mutated Coronavirus Variant Rattles Global Markets
• Delay to Lockdown Easing Triggers Slump in Pound (GBP)
• New Zealand Dollar (NZD) Surges as RBNZ Hints at Raising Interest Rates in 2022
• Pound (GBP) Exchange Rate Dips Despite the UK's Inflation Doubling in April
• Pound (GBP) Rises as UK Growth Rebounds in March