GBP/SEK: Krona Consolidates its Short-Term Gains against the Pound

Sweden’s Krona consolidated its short-term gains against the Pound in quiet session on Wednesday. At the interbank market, the GBP/SEK exchange rate settled slightly up 0.05% at 12.5242, but the pair was seen quoted within a trading range of 12.4899 and 12.5353.

In Sweden, the consumer confidence fell marginally to 92.6 in January compared to an upwardly revised 94.7 reading in December. The survey data from Stockholm’s National Institute of Economic Research (NIER) also revealed that business confidence improved among manufacturers. Sweden’s business confidence rose to the highest reading since July 2019 after it printed 97.4 compared to 94.2 reading in December.

At the same time, confidence among retailers and constructors has worsened to 109.4 and 102 respectively. According to a separate report from the government agency, the annual reading of Household Lending Growth came in flat at 5% versus 5.1% forecast figure. Sweden’s household consumption was unchanged for 10 straight months. Swedish households rose by SEK 4,207 billion in December of 2019.

The Statistics Sweden’s report also revealed that the income gap in Sweden has decelerated for the first time since the subprime mortgage crisis.

Elsewhere, the European Parliament has cleared the path for Brexit after it has ratified PM Johnson’s Brexit Withdrawal Agreement by 621 votes to 49. The UK will officially leave the 28-nation bloc on 31 January at 23:00 GMT

In the UK, currency traders are bracing for the Bank of England interest rate decision. The current benchmark interest rate stands at 0.75% and the market remains split over the necessity of a rate cut. The current BOE Governor Mark Carney will lead its last policy meeting before its departure at the end of January. Andrew Bailey will become the new Governor of the Bank of England from 16 March 2020.

From a technical perspective, the GBP/SEK pair continues to hover near the 2019 highs. The price action will remain subdued as UK traders are waiting for fresh cues from the BOE.

GBP/SEK was up 0.05% to 12.5305 in the late Asian session on Thursday.

Currencylive.com is a news site only and not a currency trading platform.

Currencylive.com is a site operated by TransferWise Inc. (“We”, “Us”), a Delaware Corporation. We do not guarantee that the website will operate in an uninterrupted or error-free manner or is free of viruses or other harmful components. The content on our site is provided for general information only and is not intended as an exhaustive treatment of its subject. We expressly disclaim any contractual or fiduciary relationship with you on the basis of the content of our site, any you may not rely thereon for any purpose. You should consult with qualified professionals or specialists before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Although we make reasonable efforts to update the information on our site, we make no representations, warranties or guarantees, whether express or implied, that the content on our site is accurate, complete or up to date, and DISCLAIM ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. Some of the content posted on this site has been commissioned by Us, but is the work of independent contractors. These contractors are not employees, workers, agents or partners of TransferWise and they do not hold themselves out as one. The information and content posted by these independent contractors have not been verified or approved by Us. The views expressed by these independent contractors on currencylive.com do not represent our views.