Pound Sterling has started the week poorly, weakening against the Euro. During trading yesterday the GBP/EUR exchange rate fell to 1.15898 which is a 4-week low. There are a number of factors that this can be attributed to, but the significant impact seems likely to be from poor UK retail data released by the Local Data Company, which concluded that more shops closed than opened in the first half of 2016 and further Brexit news causing more confusion.
Tomas Prouza, Czech State Secretary for EU Affairs, has joined a number of Central and Eastern European leaders in stating that the United Kingdom will not be allowed to maintain free-trade deals and tighter immigration policies together when they leave the EU. In response to this Theresa May commented that the 27 EU members will sign up to a deal with the UK.
Euro weakness possible with tonight’s US interest rate decision
This evening’s interest rate decision from the US Federal Reserve has the potential to impact Euro exchange rates. Although the rate is widely expected to remain unchanged, if an interest rates hike is announced expect volatility for many of the major currencies.
Tomorrow the ECB Economic Bulletin is due to be released. This in-depth analysis into Eurozone economic and monetary developments could impact Euro exchange rates, and is also followed by an address from Mario Draghi, during which any mentions of further monetary policy revisions could see Euro movement.