Pound (GBP) Sinks on No-Deal Brexit Fears

Published: 27 Feb at 3 PM Tags: Euro, Dollar, Pound Sterling, America, UK, Eurozone, Australian Dollar, New Zealand Dollar, Canadian Dollar, Australia, New Zealand, USA, Canada, China, France, Germany, Italy, Switzerland,

Pound Sterling (GBP)

The Pound (GBP) plummeted against many of its peers today after Downing Street announced that it could walk away from UK-EU trade talks as early as June.

As a result, Sterling has suffered from investors fearing a no-deal scenario between the UK and the EU by the end of the transition period, which terminates in late December this year.

Frances O’Grady, the TUC General Secretary, commented: ‘A good deal with the EU should be this government’s priority. But instead Boris Johnson is gambling with people’s livelihoods by again threatening a disastrous no deal.’

US Dollar (USD)

The US Dollar (USD) was left subdued today as odds of a rate cut from the Federal Reserve continue to escalate.

Today’s release of the US Goods Orders report for January failed to provide much uplift for the ‘Greenback’, with the figure rising by 1.1% and potentially curbing the possibility of a rate cut in the near-term.

However, as US unemployment rose unexpectedly to 219 thousand, many US Dollar traders are remaining cautious as the coronavirus could begin to negatively impact the American economy.

Euro (EUR)

The Euro (EUR) soared against the Pound (GBP) today as coronavirus fears have led to investors trading in the safe-haven single currency, while the US Dollar (USD) has remained relatively subdued on rate cut fears.

EUR’s gains, however, are expected to remain short-lived as Italy’s coronavirus outbreak will likely weigh on the Eurozone’s economy in the near-term. Furthermore, fears of a German recession are also dampening market appeal for the single currency.

Australian Dollar (AUD)

The Australian Dollar (AUD) has remained subdued against many of its peers as ‘Aussie’ investors continue to watch coronavirus developments in China, Australia’s biggest trading partner.

Ipek Ozkardeskaya, a Market Analyst at Swissquote Bank, commented: ‘The week started with heavy losses in Asian markets as the number of coronavirus cases outside China surged, spurring worries that it could become a global pandemic.’

New Zealand Dollar (NZD)

The New Zealand Dollar (NZD) has suffered similarly to the ‘Aussie’, with NZD traders becoming increasingly concerned that a weakening Chinese economy could impact the NZ economy in the near-term.

Today also saw New Zealand’s ANZ business confidence report for January fall below forecasts at -19.4, further darkening New Zealand’s economic outlook for 2020.

Canadian Dollar (CAD)

The oil-correlated Canadian Dollar (CAD) has continued to struggle on falling oil prices, with the coronavirus leaving demand for oil flagging as the global economic outlook continues to dim.

Shaun Osborne, a currency strategist at Scotiabank, Toronto, commented: ‘While U.S.-Canadian interest rate differentials continue to move against the U.S. dollar, weaker crude oil prices are a clear headwind for the Canadian Dollar.’

As of Thursday, 27th February 2020, the Pound Sterling currency rates mentioned within this news item were as follows:

GBP EUR exchange rate was 1.1719, GBP USD exchange rate was 1.2889, GBP AUD exchange rate was 1.9591, GBP NZD exchange rate was 2.0417, GBP CAD exchange rate was 1.7249, GBP CNY exchange rate was 9.0284, and GBP CHF exchange rate was 1.2488.

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