EUR/GBP Rate & Comments for 17th May 2010

EUR/GBP - 1.173

Sterling has hit a 13 month low against the US dollar in early trading this morning and also fell against the euro as house price data for the UK raised concerns over the health of the domestic economy. This is a particular worry as the new government is committed to cutting the deficit, therefore investors are concerned that the UK will experience poor growth as a result. A house price survey showed that UK prices in May rose less than they did in April pointing to a slow down in the housing market recovery. The reason for the fall was an increase in supply causing sellers to reduce their price expectations. The pound hit $1.4253/ £1 – the lowest since March 2009 – and also fell against the euro to hit a low of 1.1640/ £1. There is little other data out today and as a result, the pound is likely to continue to trade on sentiment. Call in now for an updated price as we could break through the $1.40/ £1 barrier soon.

In the Euro zone, the euro has hit a 4 year low against the US dollar of $1.2235/1 as sentiment towards the region continues to fall. Concerns that the debt crisis in Europe will undermine the global economic recovery saw Asian stocks fall by 3% overnight – the most since November 2009. This in turn drove risk aversion and saw demand for US dollar surge as a safe haven asset. There is little other data out today in Europe, so expect the sentiment based trading to continue. We could quite conceivable hit $1.15/1 in the next few weeks. Call in now to ensure you don’t lose out.

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