Pound Sterling (GBP) Exchange Rates Faced High Volatility With an Upward Bias After Surprise UK PMI Releases This Week
- The Pound to Australian Dollar exchange rate today: -0.2 per cent lower at 1.75394.
- The Australian Dollar to Pound exchange rate today: 0.09692
The GBP/AUD continued to fluctuate on Monday, regularly being pushed down from its best levels as demand for risk-correlated currencies continued to slightly improve after last week’s US NFP report.
The Australian Dollar may be in a better position to advance on Tuesday if the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) maintains a hawkish stance in its September policy meeting – which will also be the final meeting of Governor Glenn Stevens before he steps down.
Confidence in the Australian Dollar was supported by an uptick in the TD Securities Inflation measure for August, particularly as risk appetite remained heightened in the wake of Friday’s US data.
However, the GBP/AUD exchange rate was able to make strong gains on Monday morning in the wake of a better-than-expected UK Services PMI.
Pound Sterling (GBP) exchange rates fluctuated dramatically towards the end of the previous week, in response to UK PMI printings for both the manufacturing and construction sectors for August.
In the former case, forecasts had been for a minor rise from 48.3 to 48.8, which was eclipsed by the actual increase to 53.3; this sent the Pound soaring to a weekly high of 1.76 against the Australian Dollar.
For Friday’s construction result, however, while a rise from 45.9 to 49.2 was seen, this failed to generate a repeat rally due to the continued state of contraction for the sector.
Latest Pound/Australian Dollar Exchange Rates
On Friday the Pound to British Pound exchange rate (GBP/GBP) converts at 1
The pound conversion rate (against pound) is quoted at 1 GBP/GBP.
The live inter-bank GBP-EUR spot rate is quoted as 1.16 today.
At time of writing the pound to us dollar exchange rate is quoted at 1.237.
At time of writing the pound to new zealand dollar exchange rate is quoted at 2.101.
Please note: the FX rates above, updated 19th Apr 2024, will have a commission applied by your typical high street bank. Currency brokers specialise in these type of foreign currency transactions and can save you up to 5% on international payments compared to the banks.
GBP Outlook: UK Services Stats and Trade Balance Result due Next Week
The week to come will bring a pair of high-impact UK ecostats at the beginning and end, as well as a number of medium-impact announcements during the middle of the week.
Starting off the data flow will be Monday’s services PMI for August, which is expected to rise from 47.4 to 49.4, while Wednesday will bring pessimistically-predicted industrial and manufacturing production figures for July.
Closing off the week on Friday will be the UK’s July trade balance result, which is expected to show a deficit reduction, as well as the construction output figure for the same month; this has a shift from -2.2% to -1.5% on the cards.
Australian Dollar (AUD) Forecast: Aussie Closed Low Last Week after Iron Ore Forecasts Dropped Off
The ‘Aussie’ was in low demand over Friday’s trading session, due to both domestic and international developments.
In the former case, the cost of iron ore has fluctuated over the week, with long-term forecasts remaining positive despite predictions for a short-term drop in demand for the resource from China.
Elsewhere, the ‘Aussie’ was left in low demand by expectations for the outcome of key US payrolls data over Friday afternoon, which had the potential to govern how the next Fed interest rate decision could turn out.
RBA Rate Decision, AU GDP and Trade Figures to Drive Australian Dollar (AUD) Outlook
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) will open off movement for the Australian Dollar next week, when the RBA makes its monthly interest rate decision. As it stands, a rate freeze at 1.5% is expected.
Following on from this on Wednesday will be the Q2 GDP growth rate results, which are expected to dip slightly on both the quarter and the year.
While Friday will bring Australian housing data for July, the last major announcement will come on Thursday, when the July balance of trade is announced. This is predicted to show a sizable deficit reduction from -3.19bn to -1.9bn.
Is UK Economy on Stable Ground after ‘Brexit’ Vote? Confidence Index Points to Possible Problems
While last week’s UK manufacturing PMI did a great deal to restore confidence in the UK economy after the EU Referendum, some doubt remained for future movements, particularly when it came to business actions.
Speaking in response to a rising UK business confidence result for August, Centre for Economics and Business Research Director Scott Corfe said;
‘One red flag in these figures is the level of pessimism about the UK economy that the ‘Brexit’ vote has engendered in British businesses.
If these concerns materialise into reality, businesses could rapidly rein in their investment and hiring plans’.