The Pound has had a poor start to the week versus the Euro breaking below 1.12 on the Interbank level earlier today. Bank of England Chief Economist Andy Haldane is due to speak later today and with many analysts expecting a rate hike coming in May this could cause some movement for Sterling / Euro exchange rates later on tonight. I think he will remain cautious and try not to give too much away.
The next important dates for GBP/EUR rates are March 22nd and 23rd which is the EU summit. I think rates could remain relatively flat until we get some more clarity surrounding Brexit.
Indeed, the Pound has been heavily influenced in recent times with what is happening with the Brexit talks and with phase 2 due to be coming soon, could this be the catalyst to send Sterling vs Euro exchange rates in an upwards direction?
Euro economic data that could impact GBP/EUR
In the morning the Eurozone will announce their latest set of GDP data for the fourth quarter. The expectation is for 0.6% growth so any change could cause some movement for GBP/EUR rates so make sure you’re well prepared if you’re in the process of exchanging Euros or Sterling.
On Thursday the European Central Bank will be announcing their latest interest rate decision and clearly there will be no change to interest rates but any hints of QE coming to an end in the next few months could potentially cause some volatility for the Pound vs the Euro.
We end the week with a lot of UK economic data with both Industrial and Manufacturing data as well as Trade Balance figures for the UK. With the Bank of England thinking about an interest rate hike in the next two months Friday’s data could influence the central bank in the weeks ahead.