By James Tucker
Sterling has had a reasonably strong week overall, particularly against the Euro. The Pound benefited from signs that the UK economy is holding up better than expected, with the latest growth figures showing continued expansion. However, Sterling has lost some of its momentum towards the end of the week and the Euro has started to recover some ground.
Against the Dollar, the Pound has also remained fairly firm. The Dollar has struggled to make much progress this week as some US economic figures have been less convincing. This has helped both the Pound and Euro hold their ground against the Dollar.
The Euro has been stronger against the Dollar overall gaining around half a cent. Recent US figures have reduced some of the pressure on the Euro, while European economic news has been reasonably supportive. The Euro is therefore ending the week in a better position against the Dollar than it started.
For GBP/EUR, the picture is still broadly positive for the pound, but the easy gains we have seen over the past couple of months, appear to have slowed. Sterling has been unable to push significantly further, after reaching its best level for several weeks, suggesting that buyers of Euros are probably now close to the top of the current trend.
Overall, Sterling has had the better week against the Euro and has remained firm against the Dollar, while the Euro has performed better against the Dollar. The main question going into next week is whether the Pound can continue to benefit from the stronger UK economic picture or whether the Euro begins to claw back more of the recent gains. As always stay in close contact with your currency consultant to help to make your money go further.