By Ashley Finill
Happy Easter one and all. Before the Easter weekend the UK government began to ease measures on restrictions as planned after the UK had been enduring a 3 month lockdown. Outdoor activities are able to open up again, you can now meet 6 people outside of your household in the outdoor and the vulnerable no longer have to shield bringing some much needed relief for them and loved ones after a 12 month absence due to the Coronavirus. Boris Johnson last night confirmed that as planned the 12th of April will see pubs being open serving outdoors and hairdressers (FINALLY) opening. This is much needed good news for the UK and more importantly in our case Sterling as we have seen a steady rise against the Euro over the past week, currently trading at the best levels seen since the major outbreak and lockdown in the UK last March.
Sterling is looking to be in a favourable position which has been aided with a so far successful of the vaccine rollout but another factor or this could be the slowly and somewhat catastrophic handling of the rollout in the Eurozone. With delays of the vaccine across the EU it has left some nations within to have no choice but to implement further lockdowns for the next month at least. This may be a double edged sword for Euro/property buyers as with Sterling making gains on the situation across the water the consequence being flight will still be grounded for the time being which may slightly delay the dream of your property abroad.
Forward Contracts
With the current GBP/EUR rate the best it has been since the start of the pandemic, a forward contract may be the option for you if you have a set budget in mind for your property purchase which is achievable with the current rate. With a forward contact you are able to secure the full amount of Euros with only putting down a 10% deposit; a forward rate can be booked for up to two years in advance and the settlement due when said date arrives. This is a great way of securing Euros at a desired rate and removing the risk of a potential fall in the rates in the coming months, speak to you account manager today for further information.
Data this week
TUESDAY, APRIL 6
10:00 EUR Unemployment Rate(Feb)
23:00 AUD Commonwealth Bank Services PMI(Mar)
23:30 AUD AiG Performance of Construction Index(Mar)
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 7
01:00 USD IMF Meeting
06:00 JPY Leading Economic Index(Feb) PREL
08:15 EUR Markit Services PMI(Mar)
08:45 EUR Markit Services PMI(Mar)
08:55 EUR Markit PMI Composite(Mar)
09:00 EUR Markit PMI Composite(Mar)
13:30 USD Goods and Services Trade Balance(Feb)
13:30 CAD International Merchandise Trade(Feb)
15:00 CAD Ivey Purchasing Managers Index s.a(Mar)
15:00 CAD Ivey Purchasing Managers Index(Mar)
19:00 USD FOMC Minutes
THURSDAY, APRIL 8
00:50 JPY Current Account n.s.a.(Feb)
01:00 USD IMF Meeting
07:00 EUR Factory Orders s.a. (MoM)(Feb)
FRIDAY, APRIL 9
01:00 USD IMF Meeting
06:45 CHF Unemployment Rate s.a (MoM)(Mar)
07:00 EUR Trade Balance s.a.(Feb)
07:00 EUR Industrial Production s.a. (MoM)(Feb)
08:30 EUR ECB’s De Guindos speech
13:30 USD Producer Price Index ex Food & Energy (YoY)(Mar)
13:30 CAD Unemployment Rate(Mar)
13:30 CAD Participation Rate(Mar)
13:30 CAD Average Hourly Wages (YoY)(Mar)
13:30 CAD Net Change in Employment(Mar)