GBP/EUR Exchange Rate Rises as Pound Benefits from Easing UK Lockdown Restrictions
The Pound Euro rose today as the UK eases lockdown restrictions as of today, with people now legally able to meet up outdoors in groups of six. The pairing is currently trading around €1.17.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson however urged caution, saying in an overnight statement:
‘We must remain cautious, with cases rising across Europe and new variants threatening our vaccine rollout. Despite today’s easements, everyone must continue to stick to the rules.’
However, UK markets are more confident about the cautious reopening of the British economy. More than 30 million people have received their first dose of their Covid-19 vaccine.
The UK Department of Health and Social Care announced that around 57% of all adults had now received their first jab.
Today’s daily UK Covid-19 cases are also down by -1,450 compared to last week, while daily deaths are reported to be at 19, down by -14 against the previous week.
Coronavirus-related hospitalisations have also fallen throughout the UK, with those in hospital reported to be around 4,560, down by -1,576 compared to last week’s data.
As a result, the Pound Euro (GBP/EUR) exchange rate has benefited from an increasingly rosy picture for the UK’s economy as Covid-19 infections fall across the nation.
Euro (EUR) Suffers as the European Union Grapples with Third-Wave of Covid-19
The Euro (EUR) fell today because of a relatively light European data calendar in the run-up to Easter.
Added to this, the European Union (EU) is facing a worrying acceleration of Covid-19 cases throughout Germany and France.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel is now expected to assert federal control to reduce the rising in infections, which has only added to the darkening mood of Eurozone markets.
Paris-area doctors in Le Journal du Dimanche commented about France’s third-wave of Covid-19 and Paris’ struggling hospital capacity:
‘We already know that our capacity to offer care will be overwhelmed. We will be obliged to triage patients in order to save as many lives as possible. This triage will concern all patients, with and without COVID, in particular for adult patients’ access to critical care.’
As a result, the Euro Pound (EUR/GBP) exchange rate struggled today as the outlook for the Eurozone looks increasingly grim as the EU’s largest economies grapple with a third-wave of the pandemic.
Pound Euro Exchange Rate Forecast: Could GBP Head Higher as UK Covid-19 Rates Continue to Fall?
Euro (EUR) traders will be awaiting tomorrow’s publication of the Eurozone’s latest Consumer Confidence and Business Climate report for March.
Any deterioration in consumer or business morale, however, would drag down the single currency.
Tomorrow will also see the release of the flash German Harmonised Index of Consumer Prices figure for March.
If it looks like the Eurozone’s powerhouse economy is struggling from the Covid-19 pandemic, then the Euro would continue to fall against the Pound.
The Pound Euro exchange rate could continue to head higher this week, however, if the outlook for the UK’s economy continues to improve as the nation’s Covid-19 rates fall.
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