Today's Pound Sterling Exchange Rate Forecast Report for the GBP to Euro and US Dollar
The Pound continued its recovery against the U.S Dollar (USD exchange rate) on Thursday, rising through 1.4950 to approach the top end of the recently established trend.
The GBP/USD previously traded at a fresh 5-year low on Monday this week, reaching below 1.46, before a disappointing U.S retail sales report on Tuesday saw traders take profit and effectively sell the Dollar.
The FOMC has said recently that the decision when to raise interest rates will be largely data dependent and therefore a lot of emphasis will be placed on the economic calendar.
The retail sales report was expected to show a strong rebound in consumer spending at the end of the first quarter with sales expected to jump 1.1%.
The 0.9% increase wasn’t bullish enough and the figures for the previous month were also revised lower.
A quick foreign exchange market summary before we bring you the rest of the report:
On Saturday the Euro to British Pound exchange rate (EUR/GBP) converts at 0.858
At time of writing the pound to euro exchange rate is quoted at 1.165.
The pound conversion rate (against pound) is quoted at 1 GBP/GBP.
The GBP to USD exchange rate converts at 1.255 today.
Please note: the FX rates above, updated 4th May 2024, will have a commission applied by your typical high street bank. Currency brokers specialise in these type of foreign currency transactions and can save you up to 5% on international payments compared to the banks.
Pound Sterling to Dollar Exchange Rate Finds Strong Resistance at 1.50
The sales data followed the disappointing non-farm payrolls data at the beginning of the month and traders will need an upturn in positive data to start believing in a near-term rate hike.
The Pound will encounter strong resistance just below the 1.50 level and this side of the general election it remains unlikely that we’ll see a sustainable recovery.
The UK currency is likely to come under additional selling pressure again over the coming week so the current GBP/USD exchange rate close to 1.50 may represent a good opportunity for the Dollar buyers.
The Pound to Euro rate also reached a new best conversion level in 4 weeks, rising to 1.3950 on Thursday before finding support just under 1.39, while the UK currency failed to recover the 2% lost against the Australian Dollar, falling below 1.92 following some robust Aussie unemployment data.
Pound Sterling Forecast: UK Jobs in Focus/h3>
The focus this morning will fall on the latest UK employment data with jobless claims expected to show a 25,000 drop in applications for benefits.
Such a result would be broadly in line with market expectations and wouldn’t be enough to provide a further boost to Sterling.
The unemployment rate is expected to edge lower to 5.6%, while average earnings will likely remain largely unchanged.
If that proves to be the case, a smaller increase in wage growth would lead to speculation that UK inflation will drop into negative territory over the coming month and spark concerns over deflation.
GBP/EUR/USD Related Data Released 17th April 2015
EU 09:00 Current Account (February)
U.K 09:30 Claimant Count (March)
- ILO Unemployment
U.K 09:30 Average Earnings (3mth to February)
EU 10:00 Final HICP (March)
U.S 13:30 CPI (March)
¬ - Ex Food & Energy
U.S 15:00 Prelim’ Michigan Consumer Sentiment (April)