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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 declined against the US dollar after the Bank of England left its monetary policy intact including the bank rate and the asset purchase program. The pound initially spiked higher following the BoE announcement, but quickly headed lower as investor sentiment towards the pound shifted on Brexit worries.
The GBP/USD currency pair today rallied to new highs following the release of the UK labour market report for March. The report indicated that wages for workers in the UK had improved greatly, which shifted investor sentiment towards the pound, and triggered the pair’s rally.
The British pound today declined against the US dollar following the release of the UK Consumer Price Index data for February. The pound gave up all of its earlier gains accumulated during the late Asian session and early European session before the release of the UK inflation data.
The Great Britain pound jumped today against its most-traded peers on news that the United Kingdom and the European Union have reached a transition deal that would keep trade between the UK and the EU.
The GBP/USD currency pair declined after news emerged that the UK government had expelled 23 Russian diplomats following the poisoning of a Russian ex-spy. The currency pair traded choppily today as it had spiked higher following the release of the US advance retail sales data, which did not meet expectations.
The GBP/USD currency pair today traded in a tight range following the release of several UK macro reports, most of which did not meet expectations. The currency pair lacked enough momentum to rally higher following yesterday’s massive decline occasioned by higher demand for the US dollar.
The British pound today traded sideways against the US dollar after the release of the Markit/CIPS UK Construction PMI in the early European session. The pound rallied slightly higher in the mid-European session in risk-off environment as markets reacted to President Trump’s announcement that the US would institute steep tariffs on imported steel and aluminum products.
The British pound today dropped to new lows against the US dollar after the European Union released a tough draft Brexit withdrawal agreement. The UK Prime Minister rejected the deal saying that no UK leader would ever sign such a one-sided deal with the EU triggering a massive sell-off in the cable.
The Bank of England retreated today following the rebound of the US dollar. Earlier, the sterling rallied against some of its rivals thanks to comments from various UK policy makers and politicians.
The British pound was on a downtrend against the US dollar from the Asian session, but its decline accelerated after the release of the UK labour market report. The pound recovered some of its losses after the hawkish tone outlined by Bank of England policymakers before the UK Parliament’s Treasury Committee.
