US$/GBP 1.5856

Please note; due to the bank holiday in the UK on Monday 27th of August next week, Smart Currency Exchange and Smart Currency Business will not be open for trade. Business will resume as normal on Tuesday 28th.

Sterling had a mixed week strengthening against the Canadian dollar and most notably against the US dollar where it reached a 3 month high after the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting minutes were released but lost ground against the euro as poor UK economic data undermined sterling. The main UK economic data was the public sector borrowing figures which were worse than expected due to a rise in government spending and a fall in tax receipts. Other data released this week included figures from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) which showed a sharp drop in manufacturers expected orders over the next three months. Out today, the main release will be the revised GDP figures and market expectations suggest that the preliminary figures of -0.7% will be revised to -0.5%. We are still in the summer season which means that trading volumes are low and therefore any unexpected events can move rates very quickly so call in now for the latest rates.

The euro has had a fairly strong week as markets continued to speculate that the European Central bank (ECB) will intervene in Government borrowing costs by capping bond yields. Other news this week included the Eurogroup chief stating that Greece was now on its “last chance” and that it is still expected to implement all necessary reforms following a meeting with the Greek prime minister. The Eurogroup chief then went onto say that there would be no discussion of any extensions or amendments to the bailout package until after the Troika report mid-September. Europe wide manufacturing and services Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) released yesterday were better than expected; but, nearly all figures showed industry contraction. The Greek prime minister will meet the leaders of Germany and France today and any news released following this meeting could cause a lot of volatility; so, call in now for the latest news.

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US$/GBP – 1.5887 Sterling had a relatively strong day yesterday despite the lack of any significant data released in the UK, strengthening against the majority of currencies and reaching a 3 month high of 1.59 against the US dollar after the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting minutes were released. Another fairly quiet day for  Continue Reading…

US$/GBP – 1.5776 Sterling had a mixed day yesterday losing ground against the euro and gaining against the US dollar. Data released showing that the level of public sector borrowing was worse than expected due to a rise in government spending and a fall in tax receipts undermined sterling. Other data released from the Confederation  Continue Reading…

USD/GBP Rate & Comments for 19th August 2010USD/GBP – 1.552Sterling recovered from 3 week lows against the US dollar after the Bank of England’s minutes from their most recent monetary policy meeting eased market speculation that the Bank would loosen monetary policy further. Sterling rose to hit a daily high of $1.5689/£1 after hitting $1.5498/£1  Continue Reading…