GBP Recovers Against EUR, USD Peers On Stronger Data

Published: 18 Jul at 11 AM Tags: Euro, Dollar, Pound Sterling, America, UK, Eurozone, Australian Dollar, New Zealand Dollar, Canadian Dollar, Australia, New Zealand, USA, Canada, Greece, Japan, Russia, South Africa,

GBP recovers against EUR, USD peers on stronger data

Pound Sterling
GBP/EUR – Trading in the Region of 1.1575
The Pound has recovered its earlier losses against the Euro and US Dollar due to the release of the latest retail sales figures. The data came in at 0.2% on a month-by-month basis matching economist expectations. Year by year sales however beat expectations after coming in a t 2.1%, economists had been expecting a rise of 1.6%.

US Dollar
USD/EUR - Trading in the Region of 0.7633
The ‘Greenback’ has strengthened after rallying against its peers. Yesterday saw the Dollar fall against its peers after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress at his testimonial that the Central Bank’s monetary easing programme is not set in stone. Dollar traders should keep an eye on the release of the latest initial jobless claims figures due for release later this afternoon.

Bernanke satisfied both sides by saying that the pace of asset purchases could be reduced quicker if economic conditions in the United States improved at a faster than expected pace. On the other hand he said he said that the current pace could be maintained for a longer period if the labour market softened or if inflation did not rise toward its 2% target. Basically he kicked the can down the road.

The Euro
EUR/USD - Trading in the Region of 1.3101
The Euro has edged upwards against the US Dollar and other peers after the market breathed a sigh of relief after the Greek government managed to pass the latest round of austerity measures onto its austerity battered populace. The successful passing of the bill means one less potential cause of volatility for the single currency.

Australian Dollar
AUD/USD – Trading in the Region of 0.9148
The ‘Aussie’ fell against a number of its peers after the Australian business confidence index for the next three months fell to minus 1 in the second quarter from the 2 in the previous three-month period. Other data was released by the Australian Conference Board which released its leading indicator data for May earlier today. The leading indicator of Australian economic conditions remained unchanged for the month at 123.2. The index had previously risen by 0.3% in April and 0.2% in March.

New Zealand Dollar
NZD/USD - Trading in the Region of 0.7864
The ‘Kiwi’ is little changed following yesterday’s comments made by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke. It has however weakened slightly against the Pound after consumer confidence in New Zealand fell this month to 119.8 from a three-year high of 123.9 in June. It is thought rises in petrol prices and mortgages is the main cause.

Canadian Dollar
CAD/USD – Trading in the Region of 0.9583
The ‘Loonie’ remains weaker against its US relation after Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz said that the nation’s economy has significant slack and inflation remains muted, limiting the possibility of an interest rate increase. Tomorrow sees the release of a plethora of Canadian data, including the latest Consumer Price Index.

Japanese Yen
USD/JPY – Trading in the Region of 100.3231
The Yen has weakened for a second day as traders made bets that the G20 Finance ministers and Central Bankers will endorse the Bank of Japan’s monetary easing programme. Russia’s deputy finance minister said that the G20 will not be calling for a tapering of policy in the near future.

South African Rand
ZAR/USD – Trading in the Region of 0.1015
The Rand is holding steady against the US Dollar as economists await the outcome of the South African Reserve Bank’s decision on interest rates. Economists are expecting the Central Bank to keep rates at a four-decade low of 5%.
As of Thursday, 18th July 2013, the Pound Sterling currency rates mentioned within this news item were as follows:

GBP EUR exchange rate was 1.1611, GBP USD exchange rate was 1.5221, GBP AUD exchange rate was 1.6582, GBP NZD exchange rate was 1.9266, GBP CAD exchange rate was 1.5801, GBP JPY exchange rate was 152.9959, GBP RUB exchange rate was 49.3003, and GBP ZAR exchange rate was 15.1124.

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