The Euro (EUR) softened further against the Pound (GBP) on Wednesday after the single currency was weighed upon by a softer than forecast balance of trade report and as the UK currency was supported by positive unemployment data.
According to Eurostat the Eurozone’s balance of trade in May came in at €15.4 billion, the figure was down from the previous months of €15.7 billion and disappointed economist expectations for a rise to €16.3 billion. The data further highlights the weakness in the Eurozone economy.
The Pound meanwhile held onto gains against the single currency and managed to tick higher after data showed that unemployment in the UK fell again in the second quarter of the year to 6.5%.
The figure means that the number of people out of work is at its lowest level in more than five years and suggests that the labour market is approaching pre-financial crisis levels.
According to the Office for National Statistics the number of people in work surged 254,000 to 30.6 million, the biggest increase since records began back in 1971.
Meanwhile the number of people claiming unemployment benefits fell by 36,300 in June from May, also better than economists expected.
Further gains for the Pound were restrained however after a separate report showed that wage growth in the three-months through to May declined to 0.3%, the lowest amount recorded since May 2009 and was down from the 0.8% figure seen in April.
Wage growth excluding bonus payments also slowed to 0.7%.
The Euro could recover some ground on Thursday if the latest construction output and inflation data comes in positively. Another month of weak inflation however will likely see the single currency fall further.
Euro Exchange Rate News:
[table width=”100%” colwidth=”50|50|50|50|50″ colalign=”left|left|left|left|left”]
Currency, ,Currency,Rate ,
Euro,
,US Dollar,1.3541 ,
Euro,,British Pound,0.7907 ,
Euro,,Australian Dollar,1.4488 ,
Euro,,Canadian Dollar,1.4573 ,
[/table]
