After advancing on the several of its main currency rivals this week in the wake of surging services PMI and the Bank of England’s inflation report, the Pound began the European session holding steady against the US Dollar and Euro.
The Pound Sterling to US Dollar Exchange Rate was in the region of 1.5551 as of 10:25 GMT
1 US Dollar is currently worth 0.6435 pence
As well as being within touching distance of a seven-week high against the ‘Greenback’ the British currency was headed for 5-day gain against its US and European counterparts before the publication of UK trade balance and construction output figures.
Economists forecast that the UK trade deficit shrank to 8.4 billion Pounds in June while construction output dropped by 1.9 per cent.
However, the actual results were far more positive.
Data released from the Office for National Statistics showed that Britain’s deficit on trade goods dropped to 8.1 billion Pounds – the best result since July of last year.
The deficit’s unexpectedly large contraction was largely due to exports surging by almost 5 per cent.
Across the second quarter the deficit declined from 26.5 billion Pounds to 24.9 billion.
The GBP/USD exchange rate hit a high of 1.5554
Meanwhile, construction output was shown to have dropped by far less than anticipated, slumping 0.8 per cent in June month-on-month.
Year-on-year, construction output was up 1.2 per cent.
After the data was published the Pound strengthened modestly against the Euro and extended gains against the US Dollar.
UK data to watch out for next week includes Tuesday’s RICS house price balance, producer price index and consumer price index, Wednesday’s employment figures and publication of minutes from the Bank of England’s latest policy meeting and Thursday’s retail sales report.
Current Pound Sterling (GBP) Exchange Rates:
< Down > Up
The Pound Sterling/US Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.5551 >
The Pound Sterling/Euro Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.1618 >
The Pound Sterling/Australian Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.6996 <
The Pound Sterling/New Zealand Dollar Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 1.9396 <
The US Dollar/Pound Sterling Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.6435 <
The Euro/Pound Sterling Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.8604 <
The Australian Dollar/Pound Sterling Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.5882 >
The New Zealand Dollar/Pound Sterling Exchange Rate is currently in the region of: 0.5155 >
(As of 10:25 GMT)
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