Quiet markets ahead of UK data

Monday’s trading was very quiet with the pound trading within small ranges against most currencies. Very small gains were made against the Euro and Dollar but as seen last week the recovery momentum has well and truly run out making the exchange rates very susceptible to losses once the downward trend technically resumes. This small breather in the Sterling markets comes ahead of 3 key data releases due out in the next 3 working days, which will ultimately dictate whether any further spikes are to be seen, or in deed whether the best is already behind us with the likelihood of resuming the negative move should any of this data miss expectations.

Today at 9:30am we have the latest inflation figures for the UK, a key figure that could have an impact on the Bank of England’s plans to adjust interest rates in the coming months. Tomorrow we then have latest unemployment and average earnings figures for the UK, followed by Retail Sales figures on Thursday morning, shortly followed by an ECB interest rate decision for those with a Euro interest.

It is set to be a volatile week and if you have not bought your currency already then make sure you are in close contact with your broker regarding any requirements. By the end of this week we will either have seen some of the best buying exchange rates since the days following the referendum vote, or that boat will have already sailed and recent gains could well be evaporated. With the markets now expecting policy change from the Bank of England as soon as August, these current higher buying levels are expected to be short lived and should be seen as an opportunity that is currently some 4% better than just a couple of weeks ago.