GBP/USD Close To Two-Month High, GBP/AUD And GBP/NZD Surge

Published: 20 Aug at 10 AM Tags: Euro, Dollar, Pound Sterling, America, UK, Eurozone, Australian Dollar, New Zealand Dollar, Canadian Dollar, Australia, New Zealand, USA, Canada, Germany, Japan, South Africa,

Pound Sterling
GBP/EUR – Trading in the Region of 1.1736
As the local session began the Pound was trading close to a two-month high against the US Dollar. The British currency posted significant gains against the New Zealand and Australian Dollars overnight, but further Sterling fluctuations may be limited due to a lack of pertinent domestic news.

US Dollar
USD/EUR – Trading in the Region of 0.7492
The ‘Greenback’ may have dipped against the Yen overnight, but the safe-haven asset held on to recent gains against several of its other main currency counterparts. In another quiet news day US Dollar movement is likely to be dictated by speculation surrounding the minutes of the latest Federal Open Market Committee meeting, due for publication tomorrow.

Euro
EUR/USD – Trading in the Region of 1.3325
Despite an unexpected fall in German consumer prices, the Euro was holding steady against its rivals as the European session got underway. The common currency is garnering support from the expectation that this week’s PMI reports for Germany and the Eurozone will show improvement.

Australian Dollar
AUD/USD – Trading in the Region of 0.9032
Although minutes from the Reserve Bank of Australia’s latest policy meeting confirmed that the central bank is not considering an additional rate cut at the moment, the ‘Aussie’ posted widespread declines following the minute’s release as the RBA hinted that the Australian Dollar’s fluctuations would be an integral part of determining policy.

New Zealand Dollar
NZD/USD – Trading in the Region of 0.7960
During Australasian trading the ‘Kiwi’ dropped against the majority of its most traded rivals, posting its largest decline against the US Dollar for six weeks. The New Zealand asset was adversely affected by the news that the Reserve Bank of New Zealand intends to implement bank lending restrictions, thus reducing the need for a rate increase.

Canadian Dollar
CAD/USD – Trading in the Region of 0.9653
Ahead of the release of Canadian inflation and retail sales figures, the ‘Loonie’ remains trading in a tight range against the US Dollar. Although today’s domestic wholesale sales figures will be of interest, investors will largely be looking ahead to this week’s more influential news.

Japanese Yen
USD/JPY – Trading in the Region of 97.2300
The Yen was slightly firmer against its US rival as the European session began. The safe-haven asset posted a modest advance as global shares fell and emerging market currencies continued to bear the brunt of Federal Reserve easing speculation.

South African Rand
USD/ZAR – Trading in the Region of 10.1895
As emerging market currencies tumbled the Rand slumped to a six-week low against the US Dollar. The South African asset is likely to remain under pressure ahead of the release of domestic inflation data, due out tomorrow at 9:00 GMT.
As of Tuesday, 20th August 2013, the Pound Sterling currency rates mentioned within this news item were as follows:

GBP EUR exchange rate was 1.1674, GBP USD exchange rate was 1.5665, GBP AUD exchange rate was 1.7279, GBP NZD exchange rate was 1.9678, GBP CAD exchange rate was 1.6284, GBP JPY exchange rate was 152.4973, and GBP ZAR exchange rate was 15.8963.

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