The pound sterling rallied against the dollar and the yen after a report on house prices revealed an unexpected rise in May, boosting confidence among investors that the real estate crisis may be easing.
The excellent news for the United Kingdom currency revived hopes for this European nation, one of the most hit by the global crisis and the credit crunch. A report on consumer confidence this month showed the highest level in almost a year, reversing a trend of extremely low marks, adding to that, the house prices, which had constant and severe losses since the second semester of the past year, jumped sharply in May, against most of the expert forecasts, adding an extra stimulus for the improved attractiveness of the pound.
According to analysts, the pound has been favored this week by a combination of two distinct factors: the positive house survey and the gradual recovery in markets boosted by evidences that the global slump is easing considerably. Specialists also indicate that multiple domestic and international news brought the pound down to levels which do not reflect the real value of the currency, and as the scenario is not so gloomy for the moment, the pound is coming back to a more reasonable pricing level.
GBP/USD traded at 1.6120 from 1.5915 and GBP/JPY also rose from 154.20 to 154.73.
If you have any questions, comments or opinions regarding the Great Britain Pound,
feel free to post them using the commentary form below.