The Great Britain pound was the strongest major currency today, rising against all of its most-traded rivals. While there were plenty of macroeconomic reports released in the United Kingdom during the trading session, the most likely reason for the rally was profit-taking by bears as the sterling was still one of the weakest currency during this week.
The current account deficit widened to £30.0 billion in the first quarter of 2019 from £23.7 billion in the previous three months but was smaller than a deficit of £32.0 billion predicted by economists. The growth of gross domestic product in the first quarter of this year was finalized at 0.5%, unrevised and in line with expectations. Business investment rose 0.4% between the fourth quarter of 2018 and the first quarter of 2019 according to the revised estimate, whereas analysts were expecting the same 0.5% rate of growth as in the preliminary report. Nevertheless, it was a better reading than the drop by 0.9% registered in the previous reporting period. Released earlier overnight, the GfK Consumer Confidence demonstrated a drop to -13 in June from -10 in May, compared to the median forecast of -11.
Meanwhile, Boris Johnson, the most likely candidate for the leadership of the Conservative party and the seat of prime minister, refused to rule out suspension of the parliament to push through a no-deal Brexit without support from the MPs. That is after he said on Wednesday that leaving the European Union without a trade deal is “million to one against”.
GBP/USD gained from 1.2673 to 1.2697 as of 17:47 GMT today, and its session high was at 1.2734. EUR/GBP declined from 0.8971 to 0.8951. GBP/JPY advanced from 136.53 to 136.95.
If you have any questions, comments, or opinions regarding the Great Britain Pound, feel free to post them using the commentary form below.
Pound Strongest on Friday, Remains Among Weakest for the Week
