GBP Archives - MKTPlace https://mktplace.org/tag/gbp/ all about trading, Fintech, Business, AI & technology in one place Thu, 25 Mar 2021 11:59:54 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.7.2 https://mktplace.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/favicon.png GBP Archives - MKTPlace https://mktplace.org/tag/gbp/ 32 32 EUR/USD Stabilizes at 1.12 Following US Data Deluge https://mktplace.org/eurusd-stabilizes-at-1-12-following-us-data-deluge/ https://mktplace.org/eurusd-stabilizes-at-1-12-following-us-data-deluge/#respond Sat, 28 Feb 2015 10:00:22 +0000 http://www.tradersdna.com/?p=33122

The EUR/USD stabilizes to an intraday high of 1.1249 before falling sharply back toward the 1.12 handle. The pair was stabilized around 1.1208, advancing 0.1 percent. The EUR/USD faces initial support at 1.1127. A break below that level would lead to 1.1057. On the upside, resistance is ascending from 1.1324.

In economic data, German inflation showed signs of recovery in February after prices fell for the first time since 2009, a sign Europe’s largest economy was gradually regaining its footing amid rebounding oil prices.

Germany’s consumer price index rose at an annualized rate of 0.1 percent in February after plunging 0.4 percent at the start of the year, preliminary estimates revealed on Friday. However, the country’s harmonized index of consumer spending – the gauge used by the European Central Bank – remained in negative territory, declining 0.1 percent annually. The harmonized index had fallen at an annual rate of 0.5 percent in January.

Friday’s figures offer little hope that the broader euro area, comprising of 19 states including Germany, could avoid falling into a vicious cycle of deflation. Eurozone consumer prices fell 0.6 percent annually in January, the European Commission confirmed earlier this week, edging further away from the ECB’s target of just below 2 percent.

Plunging oil prices have squashed inflationary pressures throughout the advanced industrialized world, including the United States, which posted an annual inflation rate of -0.1 percent in January. That was the first time since October 2009 inflation had declined.

On Friday the Commerce Department said the US economy slowed more than initially estimated in the fourth quarter, stemming from a wider trade deficit and smaller inventory buildup. Gross domestic product expanded 2.2 percent annually in the fourth quarter, down from the “advance” estimate of 2.6 percent. However, the data set pointed to sustained growth in consumer spending, offering hope that the fourth quarter slowdown was only temporary.

Separately, US consumer confidence slipped in February, but remained close to January’s 11-year high. The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment index eased to 95.4 in February from 98.1 the previous month.

Rounding out Friday’s data releases was a housing report from the National Association of Realtors. Pending home sales, a forward looking indicator of US home sales, increased 1.7 percent in January to the highest level since August 2013, then EUR/USD stabilizes. The NAR expects existing home sales to reach a total of 5.26 million this year, up 6.4 percent from 2014.

]]> https://mktplace.org/eurusd-stabilizes-at-1-12-following-us-data-deluge/feed/ 0 EUR/GBP at 7-Year Lows Ahead of Carney, Draghi Remarks https://mktplace.org/eurgbp-at-7-year-lows-ahead-of-carney-draghi-remarks/ https://mktplace.org/eurgbp-at-7-year-lows-ahead-of-carney-draghi-remarks/#respond Wed, 25 Feb 2015 12:10:42 +0000 http://www.tradersdna.com/?p=33100

The EUR/GBP sunk to fresh seven-year lows on Tuesday, as the beleaguered euro continued to struggle amid ongoing talks between Greece and its EU paymasters about Athens’ proposed four-month loan extension.

The EUR/GBP hit 0.7316 in Tuesday’s European session, a new seven-year low. The pair rebounded slightly in Wednesday’s Asian session and was trading at 0.7333. The pair’s next lifeline is at 0.7319. A break below that level would expose the 0.7300 handle. On the upside, initial resistance is likely found at 0.7354.

On Wednesday Bank of England Governor Mark Carney will testify before parliament’s Treasury Committee. Britain’s top central banker is expected to highlight the country’s steady economic growth over the past year, despite plunging inflation. Carney has stated before that inflation could fall below zero by the spring and that the BOE could cut interest rates further to prevent long-term deflation. According to the Bank’s latest inflation report, the consumer price index will average around zero in the middle of the year before rebounding toward the end of 2015.

Last year investors appeared certain that the BOE would be the first major central bank to begin lifting interest rates. Given Britain’s currency macroeconomic realities, analysts expect the BOE to hold off on raising interest rates until at least the beginning of 2016.

Meanwhile, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi will visit the European Parliament in Brussels on Wednesday, where he will participate in a Plenary Debate on the ECB’s 2013 Annual Report.

Eurozone inflation is forecast to fall at a near-record pace in February, stoking concerns about the long-term health of the currency region and whether quantitative easing would be enough to kick start the recovery. While Germany posted stronger than forecast GDP growth in the fourth quarter of last year, the bulk of the gains were attributed to a weakening euro and plunging energy prices.

The European Commission will release preliminary euro area CPI figures next Monday. The ECB’s Governing Council will coalesce next Wednesday and Thursday to discuss monetary policy and unveil new economic projections.

In January the ECB announced it would pump up to €1 trillion into the currency region over the next year-and-a-half to stave off deflation. The €60 trillion-a-month bond buying program was much larger than analysts had expected. The announcement brought the ECB closer into line with Bank of England and United States Federal Reserve, which unleashed their own bond buying programs following the 2008 financial crisis.

]]> https://mktplace.org/eurgbp-at-7-year-lows-ahead-of-carney-draghi-remarks/feed/ 0 EUR/USD Loses 1.14 Handle as Eurogroup Talks Yield No Results https://mktplace.org/eurusd-loses-1-14-handle-as-eurogroup-talks-yield-no-results/ https://mktplace.org/eurusd-loses-1-14-handle-as-eurogroup-talks-yield-no-results/#respond Wed, 18 Feb 2015 07:00:07 +0000 http://www.tradersdna.com/?p=33042

The euro declined against its US counterpart Monday after Greek and Eurozone finance ministers were unable to reach an agreement about Greece’s bailout program, fuelling concerns the Hellenic republic was edging closer to exiting the currency zone.

The EUR/USD tumbled nearly 80 pips to an intraday low of 1.1319. It would subsequently consolidate at 1.1342, declining 0.45 percent. The pair is testing the initial support at 1.1344. A break below that level would send the pair below the 1.13 mark. On the upside, initial resistance is likely found at 1.1435.

European finance ministers met in Brussels on Monday to negotiate Greece’s debt obligations. Negotiations fell through last week after both sides failed to reach common ground. Under the authority of newly elected Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, Athens is seeking to restructure its massive €240 billion bailout package, which includes a bridging loan to fund the cash-strapped government over the next six months. Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis has stated that, unlike the existing bailout program, Greece would not accept demands for economic reforms attached to any bridging loan, and would only negotiate these terms after Greece’s public finances got some relief.

Monday’s meetings were unsuccessful, according to a Greek government official. Athens reportedly has only three weeks of cash left, placing added pressure on the country’s cash-strapped banks. Additionally, the European Central Bank will continue to offer emergency assistance only if it is tied to the existing bailout deal, which expires at the end of the month.

Varoufakis has remained defiant throughout the negotiations, having recently published a scathing op-ed in The New York Times titled “No Time for Games in Europe.”

“The lines that we have presented as red will not be crossed. Otherwise, they would not be truly red, but merely a bluff,” Varoufakis wrote in an op-ed that was published on February 16.

He added, “No more loans – not until we have a credible plan for growing the economy in order to repay those loans, help the middle class get back on its feet and address the hideous humanitarian crisis.”

Greece’s GDP has declined 25 percent since the Great Recession. The economy contracted in the fourth quarter of last year after posting three consecutive quarters of growth. The unemployment rate remained at 25.8 percent in November, Elstat reported last week. That’s a slight improvement over November 2013 levels, when unemployment was 27.7 percent.

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