- Pound (GBP) rises after 3 straight weeks of gains
- UK Black Friday figures in focus
- Euro (EUR) falls further
- Eurozone inflation and plenty of data due across the week
The Pound Euro (GBP/EUR) exchange rate is rising, building on gains from last week. The pair rose 1% across last week, settling on Friday at €1.1632 after trading in a range between €1.1495 – €1.1666. At 06:25 UTC, GBP/EUR trades +0.1% at €1.1640.
The pound rose last week for the third straight week as Brexit returned to the headlines amid suggestions that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was considering a Switzerland-style agreement more than six years on from the vote. He later denied that this was true.
Bank of England policymakers were also out in force last week, reiterating a hawkish message that the centre still had much work to do to tame 40-year high inflation. The BoE has raised interest rates 8 times since 2021, although the impact of inflation appears limited as the cost-of-living crisis continues.
Attention will be on Black Friday sales figures as the new week begins. These should provide some clues as to the health of the consumer ahead of the all-important holiday period.
According to Sensormatic Solutions, Black Friday shopper numbers rise 3.7% year on year in the UK. The high street saw a 13.9% increase in footfall. Separately, Barclaycard Payment data also showed that payment transaction volumes rose by 3.2%.
There is no major UK data today. This week is also quiet on the data from which could leave the euro in the driving seat.
The euro slipped last week despite some encouraging economic data. PMIs came in ahead of forecasts, as did German business confidence and German IFO economic sentiment rising by more than forecast.
While there is no high impacting eurozone data due to be released on Monday, there is plenty of data due to be released across the rest of the week, including Eurozone inflation data, consumer confidence figures and manufacturing PMI.
European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde is also due to speak.
