The Pound has firmed against the Euro and US Dollar today, thanks to the UK construction PMI echoing the manufacturing variant and rising above forecasts.
- GBP EUR rate trades at 1.17 – GBP USD rate hits 1.22
- Pound strengthens despite key diplomat resigning – UK construction stats beat predictions
- Euro remains soft despite inflation flash jump – US Dollar dips after Trump attacks GM
- Could further UK PMI surprise come tomorrow? – Tonight’s Fed minutes may raise USD appeal
Euro interest has been poor against the Pound but positive against the US Dollar on inflation news today, while the US Dollar has fallen across the board after a controversial start to the year for soon-to-be-President Donald Trump.
GBP EUR and GBP USD Exchange Rates Rise after UK PMIs Hit Two for Two
The Pound Euro and Pound US Dollar exchange rates have both climbed today as, following Tuesday’s manufacturing PMI climbing above estimates, the construction PMI for December has given a repeat performance today.
In less desirable news, the Pound was rocked on Tuesday afternoon by the unexpected resignation of key UK-EU Ambassador Sir Ivan Rogers, who delivered a parting shot at what he saw as an unprepared and stubborn Brexit negotiating team in the Government.
Eurozone Services Drops come with Inflation Rise, US Dollar Down after Trump Tweets
The Euro has fallen marginally against the Pound but crept up against the US Dollar today; this follows a mixed offering of key Eurozone data releases.
On the positive side, the finalised December composite PMI has risen, as has the annual inflation rate flash for the same month.
Less supportively, however, the final services PMI has dropped in December, though not by as much as expected.
For the US Dollar, trading in the middle of the week has generally been poor, with moderate declines against the Pound and Euro coming after an early start to President-Elect Trump’s social media outbursts.
The latest attack has been directed at General Motors, which was criticised by Trump for producing vehicles in Mexico and then shipping them across the border into the US to reduce costs.
Whether coincidental or not, this news was followed by Ford announcing that it had cancelled plans to open a factory in Mexico, instead opting to invest more in a US manufacturing plant.
These events show that the danger of a spur of the moment tweet from Trump remains a credible threat to US businesses, only adding to existing concerns that business in the US may become a lot more unstable after Trump takes full office on January 20th.
Future GBP EUR USD Forecast: UK Services PMI, Eurozone Retail Stats and Fed Minutes Incoming
The Pound Euro and Pound US Dollar exchange rates could well advance on Thursday morning, given the forecasts that have been made for incoming UK data.
Continuing with the trend of PMI stats, the UK’s vital services PMI result for December is due to be announced. This has a slight advance from 55.2 to 55.4 predicted, but based on the previous two PMIs this week, a forecast-beating results could well be recorded.
The next major Eurozone news will also concern PMIs, covering the December Eurozone-wide retail PMI which is due to rise out of contraction on Thursday morning.
Key US news will come earlier than these two scheduled announcements, with the Fed minutes from their December meeting due to be released this evening.
If the Fed continues to indicate that gradual rate hikes could come in 2017, the US Dollar is expected to rally, while a more cautious tone is likely to limit USD interest.
Current Interbank Exchange Rates
The Pound Euro (GBP EUR) exchange rate was trending in the region of 1.17 and the Euro Pound (EUR GBP) exchange rate was trending in the region of 0.85 today.
The Pound US Dollar (GBP USD) exchange rate was trending in the region of 1.22 and the US Dollar Pound (USD GBP) exchange rate was trending in the region of 0.81 today.
The Euro US Dollar (EUR USD) exchange rate was trending in the region of 1.04 and the US Dollar Euro (USD EUR) exchange rate was trending in the region of 0.95 today.
