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Volatility was the name of the game on Monday. The Pound versus US Dollar exchange rate experienced a roller coaster ride of a session. Trading a range of 267 points from US$1.1448 – US$1.1715, the pair settled at $1.1544 after the Fed released unlimited bond buying and Boris Johnson locked down Britain.

At 07:00 UTC, GBP/USD was trading +0.9% at US$1.1650. Investors will now look towards the purchasing managers index (PMI) for both UK and US, due to be released today.

PMI’s To Drag Pound Lower?

The Pound dropped lower versus the US dollar on Monday in anticipation of stricter measures to control the spread of coronavirus. Boris Johnson didn’t disappoint and finally locked down Britain. In an unprecedented move, British people are only allowed to leave the house for food, medical treatment, one exercise per day or “essential work”, as the government attempts to halt the spread of coronavirus

This move will paralyse the UK economy. As consumption for all non-essential items grinds to a halt.

Today investors will turn their attention to the release of the UK manufacturing and service sector PMI. The readings will be for March and therefore will show the initial impact of coronavirus on the economy. Analysts are expecting manufacturing PMI to drop to 45 in March, down from 51.7. The dominant service sector is expected to decline to 45.2, down from 53.7. A level of 50 separates expansion from contraction.

Fed Unleashed Unlimited QE

The US Federal Reserve announced an unlimited treasury purchasing plan. The US central bank released its full firepower to cushion the hit of coronavirus on the US economy. The new measures, which include buying up corporate debt will help the economy as it is due to contract over the coming weeks.

The move by the Fed came as Congress clashed over a $2 trillion fiscal stimulus package. The deal was held up on Congress over the weekend and the clashes between the democrats and republicans continued on Monday.

US Dollar investors will now look ahead to the US manufacturing and service sector PMI’s for March, Analysts are expecting manufacturing to slump to 44 and activity to drop to 42 in March from 50.7 and 49.4 respectively.