- EUR GBP rate at 0.85 – GBP EUR remains at 1.17
- Euro exchange rates dip after ECB speech – ECB’s Draghi focuses on low Eurozone interest rates
- Pound dips after previous Brexit rally – Profit-taking weakens GBP
The Euro has trended tightly against the Pound this morning, in the wake of comments from European Central Bank President Mario Draghi. Speaking yesterday afternoon after a slight delay, Draghi’s main point was that ultra-low interest rates in the Eurozone were likely to persist for the foreseeable future, owing to the central bank’s efforts to raise historically low levels of inflation.
The Pound has fallen across the board since yesterday’s rally, which has been attributed to excess profit-taking by investors following the ‘Transitional Brexit’ mentions by the PM.
(Last updated November 22nd, 2016)
The Euro has suffered from a sharp change of fortune against the Pound today, sliding against the UK currency in the wake of investor-inspiring UK news. On the Eurozone front, concerns have remained in play about who will be the next French President, with scrutiny of up-and-comer Francois Fillon raising concerns about just who is the ‘safer’ candidate to back.
The Pound has managed to pull out all the stops and rise considerably against the Euro and most other peers; this has come after Theresa May’s CBI speech led to hopes that a ‘Transitional Brexit’ could be implemented. Coming between the triggering of Article 50 and the ultimate UK exit from the EU, this was speculated to involve remaining in the single market while negotiating a UK-EU exit, potentially for more than the starting limit of 2 years.
(Last Updated November 21st, 2016)
On Sterling’s part, these overall losses have been caused by pessimistic speculation and forecasts ahead of the week’s Autumn Statement.
Euro Exchange Rate News: Falling US Dollar Boosts EUR GBP Appeal
The Euro has been able to advance against the Pound considerably today, owing to a ‘perfect storm’ of events raising Euro demand and leaving the Pound as the much weaker option. In the EUR GBP pairing, the Euro has risen by 0.6%, hitting a rate of 0.86.
With little Eurozone news out so far, the surge in demand for the single currency has primarily come from the US Dollar sliding across the board, which has conversely boosted the appeal of the Euro.
The little Eurozone data today has also been somewhat positive, with Greece posting a current account drop in September from 1.82bn to 1.01bn; this was not as large a drop as anticipated.
Pound Sterling Euro Exchange Rate Softens as PM Talks Up UK Economy
The Pound has been down by -0.6% against the Euro today, while in other pairings the UK currency has declined for the most part.
The latest developments have come from a Confederation of British Industry (CBI) conference, where Prime Minister Theresa May has been speaking.
While the Pound has not managed to rally on her words, the PM has nonetheless been giving a firmly pro-business talk about her future plans. Among these has been the controversial scheme to lower corporation tax; in the PM’s own words;
‘We want to go further, and look at how we can make our [business] support even more effective – because my aim is not simply for the UK to have the lowest corporate tax rate in the G20, but also a tax system that is profoundly pro-innovation’.
This announcement comes ahead of Wednesday’s Autumn Statement, which has been expected by some to show a gloomy forecast with low growth and high deficits and inflation ahead before the UK can properly stand on its feet as it leaves the EU.
Future EUR GBP Forecast: Euro Volatility Expected on ECB’s Annual Report Today
The next Eurozone news to watch out for will come in the late afternoon, covering two European Central Bank (ECB) speeches as well as the annual report from ECB President Mario Draghi.
As it stands, Draghi is likely to reiterate his previous summaries of the Eurozone’s performance today, stating that while growth is occurring and stability is widespread, the situation remains tenuous and further work is required to put the single currency bloc ‘back on track’.
The first real UK data of the week will come tomorrow morning, covering public sector net borrowing in October. In what may be a Pound-boosting outcome, the previous deficit figure of -10.12bn is expected to ‘improve’ to -7.6bn.
Current Interbank Exchange Rates
The Euro Pound (EUR GBP) exchange rate was trending in the region of 0.86 and the Pound Euro (GBP EUR) exchange rate was trending in the region of 1.16 today.