020 7898 0500Sterling gave back the early gains it made against the US dollar after poor data from the UK and the release of positive US data yesterday. Housing and lending data in the UK continued to disappoint, but as the slump has been already well publicised, it had limited effect on sterling as the UK currency managed to hold its ground during the morning trading session. The number of mortgages being approved is at its lowest for a year and a half, according to Bank of England (BoE) figures. The figures represented the slump for July, the first full month after the Brexit vote.
Meanwhile, across the pond we saw US consumer confidence rise to the highest level in nearly a year in August. This strengthens the case of a diverging interest rates between the UK and US as the market continues to ponder will the UK cut rates further and when will the US next hike interest rates.
It is a quiet day in terms of data from the UK today, with just the Nationwide house price index set to be released. Most of the focus in terms of UK data will be on Thursday and Friday with the manufacturing and construction Purchasing Managers’ Indices (PMIs) being released respectively.
If you are looking to buy or sell sterling, we suggest contacting your trader now for live rates, news and currency-purchasing strategies.
