Euro data set to dominate today’s market

Last week was a rocky one for the pound as we saw a significant drop in value against the euro and also some losses against other major currencies. Talk from the ECB that the recent interest rate drop was it for now, gave the green light for buying up the single currency again and we saw two cents lost on the exchange rates.

The data from the UK last week was pretty sparse giving little for the pound to use to recover but still with talk that UK growth is gaining momentum the pound was still able to hold its own. The problem we have is that economists are concerned that we may be facing a property price bubble and this for now is likely to hinder any further gains for sterling. Investor sentiment may have slightly shied away from the sterling but we are still trading at very good levels compared to what’s been seen this year against most major currencies, with rates against the US dollar just off a 2.5 year high.

It’s worth noting this as although we have lost a little ground, with December trading tending to be light on the ground we often see rates tick down so if you have a currency transaction to make, it’s probably not worth holding on in the hope the rates will pick back up to levels seen last month.

This week we have the following releases around the globe which could affect those buying rates:

Monday:

EU Manufacturing PMI
EU Trade Balance
ECB President Draghi speech

Tuesday:

UK Inflation figures
EU Inflation figures
EU ZEW Economic Sentiment survey
US Inflation figures

Wednesday:

Bank of England Minutes
US Federal Reserve Interest Rate decision
New Zealand GDP

Thursday:

UK Retail Sales
US New Home Sales

Friday:

UK GDP
Canadian Inflation figures
US GDP

A busy week and plenty of key data to affect things so if you have any currency transfers to make in the run up to Christmas the team here at Currency Index is here to offer some friendly guidance to help you make the most of your pound.