- Pound (GBP) trades mixed versus major peers
- US / EU / UK trade tensions ease
- Euro (EUR) under pressure from stronger USD
- Eurozone retail sales plunge
The Pound Euro (GBP/EUR) exchange rate is. The pair settled +0.35% higher on Thursday at €1.1604 after hitting a high 5 day high of €1.1633 earlier in the session. At 05:15 UTC, GBP/EUR trades +0.1% at €1.1570. The pair is set for gains of 0.6% across the week, its sixth straight week of gains.
The Pound advanced versus the Euro but traded lower versus the US Dollar amid a lack of fresh catalysts. With little else to go on investors continued digesting the Chancellor’s supportive Budget and optimism surrounding the reopening of the UK economy.
There was some good news on the trade front after the US agreed to a four-month suspension of regulatory tariffs imposed on UK goods over a long running aircrafts subsidiary row.
The long running tit for tat trade battle between the US, the EU and UK stemmed from a row over subsidies for aviation firms Boeing and Airbus. Both sides have pledged to use these four months to resolve the issue.
The is no high impacting UK data to investors to focus on leaving the Pound vulnerable to sentiment.
The Euro has come under mounting pressure owing to the surging US Dollar. The greenback extended gains yet again as Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said that the outlook for the US economy is becoming more positive.
Meanwhile Eurozone retail sales were particularly disappointing. Retail sales in the region fell steeply at the start of the year due to the resurgence in covid and tightening of lockdown restriction. Retail sales tanked -5.9% in January month on month. This was a significantly larger decline that the -1.7% that analysts had penciled in.
The economic calendar will remain in focus today with investors looking towards the release of Germany Factory orders. Expectations are for a slight rebound in orders to -.7% month on month up from a -1.9% decline.
