Markets React Well To French First Round

The Euro had gained 2 cents against sterling as Asian markets opened on Sunday night leaving the pound struggling once again against the single currency and with no data releases to help sterling correct, the pound had a shaky start to the week.

First off we saw the release of German business climate figures from the IFO which all beat expectations but having already gained so much overnight, the figures had little effect on sentiment, which was already lying with the single currency.
Across the pond was the only other eco stat of any note released, in the form of the Chicago National Activity index, which is meant to give a general overview to the economic activity and highlight any inflationary pressures, so important for the Fed especially when contemplating their next move regards interest rates. Alongside a manufacturing index from the Dallas Fed, markets took both releases well as the dollar managed to make some further gains against sterling, pushing down nearly a cent in all over the day.

Today is again a fairly quiet day for the UK and EU although we do have public sector borrowing figures released for the UK which is expected to increase from last month, so traders beware, if the figure is larger than expected, the pound could be on the backfoot again.

The rest of the day is made up of US data releases, including house price data and new home sales plus the consumer confidence figure all coming out after lunch, teeing up the direction for how GBP/USD will go over the rest of the day’s trade. Anyone with a need for cable, should be mindful it might be better to arrange the trade earlier in the day.

Elsewhere, there are bank holidays in Italy and Portugal plus its ANZAC day down under, leaving the Kiwi and Aussie markets shut.

With little to go on we could be looking at another sentiment led day which was firmly with the euro yesterday. Anyone looking to buy the single currency, or any other currency, should give one of the Currency Index team a call this morning to discuss your trade and the options available to you to maximise return.