British Pound Holds Post-Election Gains against Norwegian Krone, SA Rand and Swedish Krona Exchange Rates
At the close of last week the Pound gained across the board as weeks of political uncertainty culminated in the Conservative Party winning an outright majority in the UK general election. The result took investors by surprise as all the polls had pointed to a hung parliament being the most likely outcome, with either Labour of the Conservatives scrabbling to put a coalition together during a period of great political instability. An outright win and an immediate continuation of current policy measures were viewed as Pound-positive and the British asset broadly rallied.
As noted by analyst Craig Erlam; ‘The Conservatives are seen as being more business friendly and more importantly, offer continuity in a country that last year experienced the fastest rate of growth in the G7.’
A quick foreign exchange market summary before we bring you the rest of the report:
On Sunday the Norwegian Krone to British Pound exchange rate (NOK/GBP) converts at 0.072
The live inter-bank GBP-NOK spot rate is quoted as 13.95 today.
The pound conversion rate (against swedish krona) is quoted at 13.761 SEK/GBP.
FX markets see the pound vs south african rand exchange rate converting at 23.733.
At time of writing the pound to danish krone exchange rate is quoted at 8.809.
NB: the forex rates mentioned above, revised as of 28th Apr 2024, are inter-bank prices that will require a margin from your bank. Foreign exchange brokers can save up to 5% on international payments in comparison to the banks.
GBP/NOK Surges, GBP/SEK up 0.8%
Although the Bank of England (BoE) left interest rates on hold on Monday, as expected by economists, and there was little in the way of UK data, the Pound extended gains against a number of its peers over the course of the European session. The GBP/NOK exchange rate rallied by over 1.2% to achieve a high of 11.7487 as Norway published its PPI and inflation data for April. PPI printed at 5.6% on the year, much worse than the -3.7% figure expected, while the rate of domestic inflation came in at 2.0% on the year and 0.4% on the month. The only other Norwegian data to be aware of this week is the nation’s trade balance figures.
Meanwhile, the GBP/SEK currency pair also recorded an impressive advance during local trading. The Pound was trading in the region of 12.8378 against the Swedish Krona ahead of the release of Sweden’s Inflation data for April. The report, due for publication tomorrow, is expected to show a monthly rate of 0.3% and an annual rate of 0.2%.
The GBP/SEK Exchange Rate hit a high of 12.9072
Pound Sterling to Rand Exchange Rate Advances 1.30, GBP/DKK Gains 0.9%
As Friday’s US Non-Farm Payrolls report supported the case in favour of a September interest rate increase from the Federal Reserve, demand for emerging-market assets declined. The Rand also came under pressure as the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) cut interest rates in an attempt to bolster growth in the world’s second largest economy. The developments helped the GBP/ZAR exchange rate sustain an over 1% advance on Monday. The week’s South African Mining and Manufacturing Production figures are expected to show a slowing in output so the Pound could advance further against the Rand as the week progresses.
The GBP/DKK exchange rate was up almost1% at the beginning of the week as investors responded to mixed Danish reports. Denmark’s trade balance data revealed an unexpected widening in the nation’s trade surplus, but a sharp narrowing in its current account. The rate of inflation in Denmark was also shown to have slowed from 0.6% to 0.5%.
Tuesday’s UK Manufacturing and Industrial Production data is likely to cause movement in the GBP/NOK, GBP/DKK, GBP/SEK and GBP/ZAR exchange rates.
If the rate of output accelerates it would lend the Pound additional support.