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GBP/EUR: Pound Rises As PM Boris Johnson Offers Clarity On Lock Down Easing

26th May 2020

GBP rises as Boris Johnson sets out lockdown easing timetable
Brexit headlines could keep pressure on GBP going forwards
German GFK consumer confidence to pick up as lockdown eases
At 06:15 UTC, GBP/EUR is +0.1% at €1.1192 >> Real time exchange rates

The Pound is extending gains versus the Euro for a fifth straight on Tuesday. The Pound Euro exchange rate settled on Monday at +0.1% at €1.1183 as investors cheer the governments clarity of easing lockdown measures.

At 06:30 UTC, GBP/EUR is trading +0.1% at €1.1192 as the p air looks to attack €1.12.

Check real time GBP to EUR exchange rate

This week is a quiet week for the Pound as far as economic data is concerned, leaving coronavirus and Brexit driving sterling.

The coronavirus statistics are moving in the right direction with double digit daily deaths reported on Monday. Boris Johnson announcing that all shops, department stores and shopping malls will open again as from 15^th June was well received. The PM set out a clear timeline for business to return trading as long as they complied with government guidelines. The moves to ease lockdown measures are good news for the UK economy and therefore the Pound.

However, any gains in the Pound could be limited as news flow surrounding UK -EU trade negotiations are expected to pick up and remain negative for the Pound.

A hard Brexit remains on the cards if there are no extensions to the transition period. The deadline to request an extension is next month. Pressure has been mounting on Boris Johnson to extend the transition period owing to the coronavirus crisis. The decisions must be taken by 30^th June. So far Boris Johnson and his team have shown no interest in extending the timeline. As a result, the coning weeks could see demand for the Pound fall away.

Sentiment data is driving the Euro so far this week. The Euro showed resilience versus major peers on Monday following better than forecast German IFO sentiment data. The data revealed that German business expectations picked up as lockdown is lifted. Business are slowly becoming more confidence about their outlook for the rest of this year after a catastrophic few months. The main business climate index rose to 79.5 in May, up from the record low of 74.3 in April.

Today sentiment data will remain in focus with the release of GFK German consumer confidence figure for June. Analysts are expecting a slight rebound, which could help to underpin the common currency.