Currency Insights

GBP supported by surprising retail sales

Sterling had been sliding in value for most of Monday but it sparked back into life overnight after the British Retail Consortium published their sales monitor showing 4.1% growth in the year to November.

USD weaker on jobs data and China reopening

Blogs

A partial reopening of the Chinese economy and stronger-than-expected US employment data reduced the safe-haven demand for the US dollar on Friday.

USD pummelled as optimism rises

Blogs

There is a technical term for what happened to the US dollar yesterday and that word is ‘mullered’. The American currency lost ground right across the board and, thus far, that has been the story of the week. That fall was driven by a reduction in safe-haven buying of the USD as news emerges that China may be softening its stance on lockdowns and the data from the eurozone Purchasing Manager's Indices was marginally less pessimistic.

USD drops on more poor data

Blogs

The last working day of the month is often a lottery; the direction of travel for some currencies through the earlier part of the month can be reversed in full or in part. We saw that with the US dollar yesterday, which weakened across the board. The weakness was aided and abetted by a number of factors that make sense of the Fed’s apparent new-found dovishness.

Canadian growth beats forecasts

Blogs

Canada's economic growth data surprised the markets yesterday. Most analysts had expected a sizable drop in the growth rate to 1.5%. However, the annual growth rate to the end of Q3 was 2.9%, nearly double that expectation and only marginally down on the Q2 figure of 3.2%.

Bank of England facade in London in the evening. BoE UK interest rate cut concept

GDP slowing everywhere – Sweden and Switzerland included

Blogs

This morning started with two sets of economic growth data. Sweden published Q3 GDP growth of just 0.6% (down from 1.4% in Q2) and that brought the annual growth rate down to 2.5% from 4.2% previously. An hour later, Switzerland announced an annual growth rate of just 0.5%, much worse than the Q2 rate of 2.2%.

Commodities slip on China revolt

Blogs

Currencies of countries that export large amounts of commodities are sliding, probably in response to the attempts at lockdown in China and the subsequent resistance by Chinese citizens. Demonstrations against the Covid restrictions are happening in Beijing and Shanghai on a scale not seen since Tiananmen Square in 1989.

USD flat in thin markets

Blogs

Trading volume and volatility were in short supply on Thursday as the US markets took a public holiday. Those conditions are likely to continue into the dreaded Black Friday as well, as US markets only operate for half the day and few traders bother to get involved; so alluring is the prospect of an air fryer with 40% off.

US dollar weaker as Thanksgiving weekend starts

Blogs

Disappointing US data and a more dovish tone from the Federal Reserve minutes allowed the US dollar to weaken yesterday, as US traders prepared for, what has become a four-day weekend these days. It is Thanksgiving Day today.

NZD gains strength from record rate hike

Blogs

The Reserve Bank of New Zealand delivered a record-breaking 75 basis point interest rate hike when they met in the early hours of this morning. That brought the base rate up to 4.25%; the highest since December 2008.

USD loses momentum after impressive Monday

Blogs

Mixed messages coming from US Federal Reserve undermined the strength the USD displayed yesterday. Cleveland Federal Reserve President Loretta Mester said that, while she doesn't have a problem with the Fed cutting the size of its interest rate hikes, she will need to see further progress on inflation reduction before she is ready to advocate no interest rate hikes at all.

Asian stocks tumble on China resuming tighter Covid controls

Blogs

The pound is starting the week on the decline, trading just above $1.18 after surpassing $1.20 last week. That has a lot to do with the stronger dollar, which has been in demand as risk aversion climbed on signs that China is resuming tighter Covid controls.

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