020 7898 0500It was quiet in the currency markets at the end of the week, with Thanksgiving on Thursday followed by Black Friday. Due to the expected rises in US inflation and interest rates, the US dollar has gained 6% over the past two months against a basket of currencies, and many forecasters expect this trend to continue. The only currency which has held its own has been sterling.
This week will start fairly quiet but in the second half of the week we will see important jobs and manufacturing data releases, the highlight being the key non-farm payroll data on Friday. These figures will be the last jobs data before the Federal Reserve meeting on 14th December. Markets are pricing in an almost 90% chance of an interest rate hike.
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