A day full of currency news dizzies the markets

Today saw a multitude of important news releases and developments around the world, all with a strong influence on exchange rates.

In the UK the figures for the fourth quarter 2011 GDP showed a disappointing 0.2% contraction in the British economy. At the same time, the Bank of England minutes revealed that the monetary policy committee are likely to add to quantitative easing in February, and public borrowing figures were not positive either. This should all have been disastrous for the Pound, but somehow sterling held its own on the markets for the most part of the day.

Next, we had Eurozone talks said by Greece to be close to concluding this week, which could bring at least a temporary solution to sovereign debt concerns. This may well strengthen the Euro, giving worse exchange rates for sending money to the single currency area.

Finally in the USA Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke signalled that the US central bank is also considering more monetary easing, and that interest rates would remain near zero until 2014. This weakened the dollar, giving the best exchange rates for some weeks for sending money to the USA.

All in all, a very busy day with exchange rates proving unpredictable. There are opportunities to secure preferential rates in the current markets, whatever currency you need to buy or sell, so do contact us for some help with your own transaction.