020 7898 0500It’s this Friday when Donald Trump will officially become President of the United States.
The day before that, a number of Federal Reserve members will be speaking. Any talk of interest rate hikes or trimming the size of the Fed’s bank balance sheet should give the dollar another boost. The dollar is widely expected to remain strong in the short to medium term.
Last week’s US retail sales figures saw a month-on-month increase in December, by 0.6%, after gaining 0.2% in November. Consumer confidence was little changed in January but still at near 12-year highs.
Whilst the dollar maintains its strength against sterling, it has had its worst week in two months across the board. Had it not been for May’s comments the weekend before last, potentially we could have seen a sterling rally against the dollar.
Markets have become slightly concerned about Trump’s Presidency, especially as recently there hasn’t been any talk of the fiscal stimulus, which was mentioned so often during his election campaign, and instead Trump’s focus seems to be on building walls on the border of Mexico.
