EUR weakness GBP/EUR above 1.41

May 26th: Highlights

• EUR weakness moves GBP/EUR above 1.41
• USD strength drives Cable down to 1.54
• Greece and Spanish election result weighs on Euro
• EUR/USD trading around 1.09

Sterling Comment

Sterling had a setback against the US Dollar on Friday following the release of US CPI data. Janet Yellen and the Fed remain on a fairly steady path towards rate tightening, if the economy still maintained its positive momentum, and this has helped the USD regain the upper hand, driving Cable down to around the 1.54 level

Rather than any real Sterling strength (shown by the slip Vs USD), we have seen Euro weakness help move GBP/EUR above 1.41 now. Together with the ongoing Grexit debacle, the Euro is on the ropes because of Spanish local elections, which saw big losses for the ruling Partido Popular party. If you’re looking to buy Euros, it’s the best we’ve seen since early March, so why not log on to our marketplace to see who’s offering you the best exchange rate.

With bank holiday out of the way, investors will be keeping a close eye on Tuesday’s UK CBI Reported Sales. On Wednesday we look forward to the influential German Gfk Consumer Confidence Survey for June.

Greece Special

It’s back to the negotiating table again today with a deal seemingly nowhere in sight. We’re unsure if it’s due to paranoia, a timely comment with Cameron’s ‘meet the EU leaders’ roadshow, but Brussels President Jean-Claude Junker’s comments were interesting when he said, “If we were to accept, if Greece were to accept, if others were to accept that Greece could leave the area of solidarity and prosperity that is the Eurozone, we would put ourselves at risk because some, notably in the Anglo Saxon world, would try everything to deconstruct the Euro area piece by piece, little by little.”

The next date for the diary, regarding Greek repayments, is June 5th. As things stand there is still no substantial improvement on a potential agreement between Greece and its creditors over reform proposals and this weekend, Greece’s Interior Minister Nikos Voutsis fired a warning that it would be impossible for Greece to pay if a cash for reforms deal is not brokered with its international lenders. And so the merry-go-round continues…

Global Comment

The US Dollar remains supported after better than expected data on Friday showed that U.S. core consumer prices rose 0.3% in April and placed 1.8% higher on a year over year basis. This represents the largest increase since October. We’re seeing fresh USD strength against the Euro, hitting a 4-week low at 1.0896, and an 8-year high against the Yen.

Have a great day!