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Great Britain Pound GBP
Central Bank: Bank of England
Interest Rate: 0.75%
Public Debt to GDP Ratio, 2017: 90.4%
Trade Balance, 2017: -$166 bln.
Inflation, 2017: 2.6%
Global reserve currency
medium
Currency of international trade
weak
United Kingdom's exit from the European Union
strong
The Great Britain pound sterling (usually called simply “pound” or “sterling”) is the currency used in the United Kingdom and in British territories. Banknotes were introduced following the creation of the Bank of England in 1694, but the history of the currency can be traced long before that, making the pound the oldest world currency that is still in use. The sterling was the most important currency in the world before the World War I. After the World War II had broken out, several countries (for the most part those that belonged to the British Empire) either introduced the pound as their own currency, or pegged their currencies to the sterling. These countries have become know as the sterling area. The importance of the UK currency and the sterling was diminished after the pound was allowed to float freely in 1972. Subsequently, the role of the major world medium of exchange passed to the US dollar. It is still the fourth most traded currency after the dollar, the euro and the yen. The pound is also used as a reserve currency.
The British pound today fell from yesterday’s 2-month highs against the US dollar following Theresa May‘s victory in the no-confidence vote against her on Wednesday. The GBP/USD currency pair today declined as markets monitored Brexit developments amid low volatility.
The Great Britain pound fell against other most-traded rivals, even the weak Japanese yen, after official data showed that retail sales declined last month.
The Great Britain pound was the strongest major currency on the Forex market during Thursday’s trading after UK Prime Minister Theresa May won the confidence vote on Wednesday.
The Sterling pound today traded in a range as investors recovered from yesterday’s crazy swings following the historic Brexit vote. The GBP/USD currency pair was largely immune to most of the data released from the UK docket as investors remained cautious ahead of a Parliamentary no-confidence vote against Theresa May.
As was expected UK Prime Minister Theresa May suffered a defeat in the crucial Brexit vote. Yet apparently, traders used “sell the rumor, buy the fact” approach for the Great Britain pound as the currency jumped on the news.
The Great Britain pound will likely experience significant volatility this week due to the upcoming Brexit vote. Because of the importance of the event, macroeconomic data should have a limited impact on the currency, being overshadowed by the vote.
The British pound today rallied higher against the US dollar in the European session on rumors that Brexit would be delayed. The GBP/USD had posted small gains after the release of mixed UK data where the GDP beat expectations, while manufacturing data missed estimates.
The British pound today fell to new 2-day lows against the US dollar amid a risk-off market sentiment, which favored the US dollar. The GBP/USD currency pair today broke the crucial 1.2700 support level as the markets continued to react to the uncertainty facing the UK economy due to the looming Brexit date.
The British pound today rallied higher against the US dollar largely due to high selling pressure on the greenback during the European session. The thin trading activity witnessed in the markets on the last trading day of 2018 and Brexit developments might have also contributed to the spike higher.
The British pound has traded in a wide range against the US dollar during today’s session as the bears and the bulls fought for control over the currency’s price direction. However, neither camp was winning after the release of positive UK quarterly GDP data accompanied by disappointing public borrowing data.
