- Unusual investor response to latest drop in UK PMIs for April
- ‘Loonie’ stages recovery on rising oil and gold costs
- US Dollar generally positive despite Trump campaign implications
- UK local elections ongoing; US and Canadian data out this afternoon
The Pound (GBP) has defied expectations today, having risen or remained steady against a number of peers despite highly disappointing data.
The Canadian Dollar (CAD) has been a fairly safe bet, having risen on the latest commodity price fluctuations.
The US Dollar (USD) has been a mixed prospect, having fluctuated wildly in response to the latest political and economic developments.
UK Economic News: Investors make the Best of a Bad Situation with Day’s PMI Printings
The Pound (GBP) has been surprisingly positive against its various rivals today, with advances of 0.3% against the Euro (GBP/EUR), 0.4% against the Swiss Franc (GBP/CHF) and 0.5% against the Hungarian Forint (GBP/HUF) being recorded.
The circumstances for this effective uptrend revolve around the week’s UK PMI printings for April; after both the manufacturing and construction results fell earlier in the week, little hope was had for today’s composite and services outcomes.
True to form, these fell by worse than forecast, but the Pound’s generally stable condition may be due to the simple fact that both fields remained above the contraction range.
In a worrying statement, Markit’s Chris Williamson said:
‘The deterioration in April pushes the surveys into territory which has in the past seen the Bank of England start to worry about the need to revive growth, either by cutting interest rates or through non-standard measures such as QE’.
Canadian Dollar (CAD) Stable on Commodity Pricing while US Dollar (USD) Mixed after Path is Cleared for Trump
The Canadian Dollar (CAD) has been mainly positive against its peers today, which is likely on account of the recent upticks for the price of gold and crude oil on the WTI index.
‘Loonie’ gains have included 0.3% against the Pound Sterling (CAD/GBP) and 0.5% against the Euro (CAD/EUR).
The US Dollar has had a more mixed outlook, with a slowdown in Chinese composite and services fields being the potential cause. Another factor that could be limiting the performance of the ‘Buck’ may be the recent developments in the Republican presidential nominations; with the withdrawal of the last remaining rival to radical businessman Donald Trump, it seems that at least one of the options for voters in the November election has already been decided.
The US Dollar (USD) has risen by 0.3% against the Pound Sterling (USD/GBP) and by 1.2% against the South African Rand (USD/ZAR) today, with other movements consisting of tight trends.
Future GBP, CAD, USD Forecast: Canadian Building Permits, US Jobless Claims and UK Elections Results Ahead
The remainder of the day is expected to bring economic announcements that could affect all three currencies in question, with the Canadian ecostats due out first.
This will concern the number of building permits granted in March; a large drop from 15.5% to -4.4% is expected to occur.
The US announcements will be out around the same time, concerning the initial jobless and continuing claims made for late April.
In a broader situation, the Pound could be shifted in its appeal later on or overnight when the results of the local elections start to drift in.
Current GBP, CAD, USD Exchange Rates
The Pound Sterling to Canadian Dollar (GBP/CAD) exchange rate was trending in the region of 1.8598 while the Canadian Dollar to Pound Sterling (CAD/GBP) exchange rate was trending in the region of 0.5382 today.
The Pound Sterling to US Dollar (GBP/USD) exchange rate was trending in the region of 1.4462 while the US Dollar to Pound Sterling (USD/GBP) exchange rate was trending in the region of 0.6914 today.
The Canadian Dollar to US Dollar (CAD/USD) exchange rate was trending in the region of 0.5382 while the US Dollar to Canadian Dollar (USD/CAD) exchange rate was trending in the region of 1.2856 today.
Comments are closed.