Sterling report and forecast U.K GDP Figures due this morning - expect major volatility!

Sterling report and forecast Friday 26th February 2010 – Daniel Wright (Associate Director at FCD)

Contents of this report

This report will cover the following information that is due to be released in the short term that may affect the cost of buying foreign currency or how many pounds that you will receive when bringing money back.

• U.K GDP Figures

• GBP – USD Hitting lowest since May 2009

• GBP – AUD Recently hit a 25 year low – will they raise rates?? How low can it go?

• Other information that may affect you upcoming transfer

U.K GDP Figures released this morning!

This morning sees an extremely important release for the U.K and indeed the Pound as the revised GDP figures are due out at 09:30am. Expected is for the revision to bring the figure up from 0.1% to 0.2% however I personally would be extremely surprised to see this come out as expected.

With the dire weather seen in the U.K towards the end of last year and the flurry of poor data we saw during that period, alongside the fact that the same release for Germany came out much worse than expected (as detailed in yesterday’s report), I expect to see revised GDP for the U.K to come out worse than predicted leading to losses for the Pound against a basket of major currencies.

“Mervyn King suggesting that failing to act now could pave the way for bigger problems in the future has seen Sterling suffer greatly, I expect this to continue through Friday to end what has been a particularly poor week for Sterling – and there are no signs of it getting any better for next week.” Commented Stephen Hughes, Director at FCD

The same data is due for the U.S at 13:30pm and expected is a figure of 0.6%. Expect Dollar volatility should this come out different.

Should you be worried about the potential cost of an upcoming transfer call us free on 0800 328 5884 and speak to a currency expert who will explain the many options available to you including forward contracts, stop and limit orders.

What do you think?

Being a trader looking after hundreds of clients I am always interested to see what the general public think – Will the Pound suffer once again throughout 2010? Will the Euro plummet once the so called PIGS real problems come to light? Is the Dollar going to continue its forceful rally?

djw@currencies.co.uk is the best route of getting in touch – I welcome your thoughts on the current global economic situation.

GBP – USD Hits lowest level since May 2009!

Dollar buyers and sellers must be aware as the Pound dropped to its lowest level since May 2009 to buy the greenback yesterday, creating fantastic opportunities for those with Dollars to sell and an uncomfortable decision for those looking to buy Dollars.

With the U.K and Euro Zone both looking shaky at the moment investors are rushing to buy gold and U.S bonds as they perceive it as a ‘safer haven’ hence more demand for Dollars and the Dollar gaining strength.

GBP – AUD 25 Year Low

Once again another currency pairing hitting lows not seen in a very long time however it looks like this trend may continue.

The Reserve Bank of Australia meet for their interest rate decision on Tuesday and expectations are for the 4th rate hike in 6 months. A rate hike is generally seen as positive for the currency concerned and therefore points to further potential AUD strength. If you have a purchase of AUD to make it may be prudent to consider your options in advance of what could be an important decision.

Breaking news overnight!

Overnight saw the release of House Price data and Consumer Confidence for the U.K – Consumer confidence came out slightly better than expected and house price data a lot worse – this has led to minor Sterling weakness in early morning trading.
Should you wish to discuss anything in this report and how it may affect a upcoming transfer then contact one of our friendly traders here at FCD on 0800 328 5884 or email me personally at djw@currencies.co.uk

This is a brief summary of todays report for further information on the currency markets or if you have an upcoming transfer to make and want to discuss the options available to you call Daniel Wright on 01494 787462 or email me djw@currencies.co.uk

I assist thousands of clients to send money overseas or receive money from overseas involving the following currencies - Please note I do not deal with cash it is bank to bank only!! AED AUD BHD CAD CHF CZK DKK EUR GBP HKD HUF INR ILS JPY KES KWD MAD MUR MXN NOK NZD OMR PLN SAR SEK SGD THB TRY USD ZAR

Have a great day and thanks for reading!

Daniel Wright

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Sterling exchange rates forecast and report - Greece to headline the week?? Euro Dollar Rand

Once again good morning and I hope you had a great weekend!

Another interesting week ahead with releases regarding the Greek bailout package probably being the main talking point to start the week off, thuis could push the market either way dependant on what comes of it and it is so important to be on the ball this week as the release could come at any time and could have a huge effect on exchjange rates.

Also this week we see the release of some key inflation data tommorow for the U.K - The last set of inflationary datacame out higher than expected and led to Sterling strength against a basket of major currencies so it is certainly one to keep an eye on. High inflation is generally battled by raising interest rates and a hike in interest rates is generally seen as positive for the currency concerned.

On wednesday of this week it is time for the Bank of England minutes from the last interest rate decision and will show exactly how much support there was behind ending the Quantitative Easing programme so once again may lead to volatility.

This is a brief summary of todays report for further information on the currency markets or if you have an upcoming transfer to make and want to discuss the options available to you call Daniel Wright on 01494 787462 or email me djw@currencies.co.uk

I assist thousands of clients to send money overseas or receive money from overseas involving the following currencies - Please note I do not deal with cash it is bank to bank only!! AED AUD BHD CAD CHF CZK DKK EUR GBP HKD HUF INR ILS JPY KES KWD MAD MUR MXN NOK NZD OMR PLN SAR SEK SGD THB TRY USD ZAR

Have a great day and thanks for reading!

Daniel Wright

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[09:07:23] Chris Knights:

Sterling report and forecast 27th January 2010

Sterling has had a rocky 7 days on the markets and it looks set to continue with a number of interesting maybe more news based releases due to come out over the week.

Obviously the key one of the week is the U.K officially coming out of a recession yesterday, however we just crept out of one so good news on paper but in general there is still plenty to be done.

The Iraq inquiry is also set to be a very interesting time for the Pound as there will be some extremely heavy questioning, especially for Tony Blair, and with the U.K still having a Labour Government still in power this may lead to political uncertainty which in turn could bring Sterling weakness.

This is a brief summary of todays report for further information on the currency markets or if you have an upcoming transfer to make and want to discuss the options available to you call Daniel Wright on 01494 787462 or click here to email me djw@currencies.co.uk

I assist thousands of clients to send money overseas or receive money from overseas involving the following currencies - Please note I do not deal with cash it is bank to bank only!! AED AUD BHD CAD CHF CZK DKK EUR GBP HKD HUF INR ILS JPY KES KWD MAD MUR MXN NOK NZD OMR PLN SAR SEK SGD THB TRY USD ZAR

Have a great day and thanks for reading!

Daniel Wright

Need a hotel overseas - Look no further, click below!!

[09:07:23] Chris Knights:

Sterling Euro rally contiued yesterday - exchange rates dropping this morning following Pound strength

Sterling Euro rates have been slightly dropping this morning after making headway all week and hitting the hightest point since August at around 1.1550.

The phones are ringing like crazy in the office with people looking to take advantage of current levels so i'm afraid I just do not have the time to write a full report for regular and new readers at present this morning!!!!

Do feel free to click on the link below for today's daily report on our website written by one of our senior traders for information today...

This is a brief summary of todays report for further information feel free to Email Me - Or click on the banner below to see today's full market report Click here to read the full report on our main website

If you have the need to send money overseas or bring money into the U.K and want the best exchange rates and a great service just click on the links below to go straight to our main site and click on the register now button to open a free no obligation trading facility quoting DANIEL WRIGHT as your point of contact.

I assist thousands of clients to send money overseas or receive money from overseas involving the following currencies - Please note I do not deal with cash it is bank to bank only!! AED AUD BHD CAD CHF CZK DKK EUR GBP HKD HUF INR ILS JPY KES KWD MAD MUR MXN NOK NZD OMR PLN SAR SEK SGD THB TRY USD ZAR
Have a great day and thanks for reading!

Daniel Wright

Sterling report and forecast GBP January 7th 2009 against EUR USD AUD SEK NOK NZD CHF and more

Yesterday saw Sterling take a tumble once again as one of the four factors of the currency compass – Political certainty took a huge turn for the worse.

Two Ex Cabinet ministers – Patricia Hewitt and Geoff Hoon have come out and called for a secret ballot on Gordon Browns leadership merely months before the general election is to be held. Although at first sight it appears that the request has very little support, it is still a telltale sign that the party is clearly divided and starts off an interesting 2010 politically with a bang.

The factors that affect the strength of a currency ( sometimes also known as the Ellis currency compass are Economic stability, Political certainty, Acts of terror and Acts of god.

Although there is clearly little one can predict about the latter two appearing the first two points are always key, and if you look at the U.K economically coupled with the latest twist in the labour Government it does not paint a pretty picture for the Pound in the short term.

Broken and now frozen Britain!

The whole of Britain got hit with a major freeze yesterday alongside a huge amount of snow causing chaos on the roads and indeed closing many businesses.

Should this poor weather continue it may have an effect on the future strength of Sterling for a number of reasons – Retail sales rely heavily on the weather and with not only consumers unable to hit the stores but also some stores not even opening it could put a major dent in figures for January.

Alongside this thousands of businesses have had to close as staff simply cannot make it to work, slowing down production and costing the British economy Billions of Pounds.

Should you be stuck inside over this period why not take a look at your finances and make that currency purchase you just have not had time to get round to lately.

Here at FCD so far our trading lines have been open from 08.30am until 18:00pm to continue to assist you with your currency needs come rain or shine. Call us now on 0800 328 5884 should you wish to discuss any upcoming requirement, and one of our bright and friendly traders will be happy to assist you.

Breaking news yesterday evening & overnight

Yesterday evening saw the release of the FOMC minutes over in the U.S and comments made by the Fed confirmed they are worried about sluggish job growth and the recovery will be slow, usually one would expect Dollar weakness but this morning we have actually seen the opposite, proof there if still confidence in the Dollar.

We also saw the release of Trade balance and retail sales figures for Australia which came out slightly better than expected and has led to early morning gains for the Australian Dollar.

Today’s Data

Today promises to be an interesting day on the markets most notably with the Bank of England interest rate decision at 12:00pm and you should certainly speak to your account manager here at Foreign Currency Direct about the effects it may have on your particular purchase:

10:00am – European Retail Sales – This data may cause volatility for the Euro should it come out any different than the 0.1% increase expected.

12:00pm – Bank of England interest rate decision – No changes to interest rates are expected and this should be a low key decision however as regular readers must be aware the Bank of England do like to surprise us and any mention of future interest rate movements, economic policies or quantitative easing may cause large market movements.

This is a brief summary of todays report for further information feel free to Email Me - Or click on the banner below to see today's full market report Click here to read the full report on our main website

If you have the need to send money overseas or bring money into the U.K and want the best exchange rates and a great service just click on the links below to go straight to our main site and click on the register now button to open a free no obligation trading facility quoting DANIEL WRIGHT as your point of contact.

I assist thousands of clients to send money overseas or receive money from overseas involving the following currencies - Please note I do not deal with cash it is bank to bank only!! AED AUD BHD CAD CHF CZK DKK EUR GBP HKD HUF INR ILS JPY KES KWD MAD MUR MXN NOK NZD OMR PLN SAR SEK SGD THB TRY USD ZAR
Have a great day and thanks for reading!

Daniel Wright

Sterling report and forecast December - GBP AUD USD EUR CHF currency information

Sterling report and forecast 14th December 2009 - Daniel Wright (Associate Director)

This report is written for current and potential clients of Foreign Currency direct to provide important information on Sterling and a basket of major currencies recent movements alongside providing vital information on upcoming data releases that may effect the cost of sending money overseas or bringing money back.

Friday’s movements
GBP-EUR 0.73% GBP-USD (0.39%) GBP-AUD 0.40% GBP-NZD 0.21% GBP-CHF 0.39%

Sterling Report

The Pound made considerable gains against a most major currencies in Friday afternoons trading bringing some of the best exchange rates of the week. The most notable of moves being against the Euro where gains of over half a percent were seen in the final hours of trading.

This was mainly down to one of the largest credit ratings agencies in the world announcing that the U.K and the States top AAA rating was under no immediate threat which instantly bought more confidence to Sterling and the Dollar.

Moody’s Investors Service also said that indeed the earliest they could see a change being made to the rating would be 2013 and even then that would be a worst case scenario.

Sterling failed to make any ground against the Dollar following slightly better than expected data in the U.S coming out on Friday and in general the Pound would have gained more against a basket of currencies however Alistair Darling’s Pre budget report was still holding it back as it is widely thought that he is not doing enough to tackle the U.K’s ballooning deficit.

"Poor sterling fundamentals and the fact that the dollar is on a bit of a bounce is seeing sterling/dollar on the downside," said Michael Hewson, analyst at CMC Markets.

"Moody's has said the UK is in no imminent danger of a ratings downgrade, but this does not change the fundamentals and the fact that no meaningful steps are likely to be taken, at least for the next six months," he said.

These movements really do once again prove why that if you do have a transfer to make it is imperative to have a free, no obligation trading facility open here at Foreign Currency Direct which can be opened in just two minutes by clicking here. Once open you will be allocated a personal account manager who can contact you to inform you of movements throughout the day should you wish. Catching the Euro rate yesterday afternoon during the spike could of gained you over €350 on a £50,000 purchase.
Sterling forecast - the days ahead


Today - Following the Rightmove house price data released this morning there are only three releases of note today starting with Swiss inflation data at 08:15am which could cause volatility for the Swiss franc, this is followed at 10:00am by some European employment change and industrial production figures - any change to the expected figures could set the scene for the day for the Euro so be sure to keep a close eye on this one and be prepared to act fast if you have a trade to carry out.

Tuesday - One for the early birds sees the Reserve Bank of Australia release their minutes and following three consecutive rate hikes they may indicate how likely it is to see a fourth, anyone with Australian Dollars to buy or sell may want to lock into a rate today or put in a stop loss and limit order to avoid waking up to your money being worth a lot less than it was before you went to bed.

Also due over the course of Tuesday is production data for Switzerland at 08:15am, a flurry of inflationary data for the U.K at 09:30am, German ZEW sentiment data at 10:00am and inflationary/production data for the States at 13:30pm and 14:15pm respectively.

This promises to be a busy day on the markets and some great buying and selling opportunites may pop up during the day so inform us of your requirements and let us watch the markets for you - If there is a specific rate you are looking for there are many tools available to assist with your needs, call 0800 328 5884 now for further information on how these work.

Wednesday - Another extremely important overnight release from Australia which could once again bring large market movements in the early hours is the Gross Domestic Product data due at 00:30am. Expectations are for 0.6% growth in the last quarter and any change to this is bound to cause AUD movement.

The rest of the day brings a large amount of unemployment data for the U.K at 09:30am which could lead to high volatility dependant on what comes out, further inflationary data for the Eurozone and U.S at 10:00am and 13:30pm leading up to the Federal reserve interest rate decision at 19:15pm.

No change in rates is expected however be aware of any mention of future economic policies which may have an affect on the Dollar.

Just why have over 31,000 individual clients chosen to trade billions with us here at FCD??

At FCD we pride ourselves on fantastic rates of exchange alongside great customer service…. we have indeed won awards for both! Click here to see our video by the national business awards which gives a great insight into how we work and operate. Just being kept up to date and made aware of market movements during these volatile times can save you thousands, so don’t hesitate either open a free trading facility here or call 0800 328 5884 and see for yourself.

This is a brief summary of todays report for further information feel free to Email Me - Or click on the banner below to see today's full market report Click here to read the full report on our main website

If you have the need to send money overseas or bring money into the U.K and want the best exchange rates and a great service just click on the links below to go straight to our main site and click on the register now button to open a free no obligation trading facility quoting DANIEL WRIGHT as your point of contact.

I assist thousands of clients to send money overseas or receive money from overseas involving the following currencies - Please note I do not deal with cash it is bank to bank only!! AED AUD BHD CAD CHF CZK DKK EUR GBP HKD HUF INR ILS JPY KES KWD MAD MUR MXN NOK NZD OMR PLN SAR SEK SGD THB TRY USD ZAR
Have a great day and thanks for reading!

Daniel Wright

Sterling report and forecast - the week ahead assistance with exchange rates Early Monday monring losses for the Pound

Sterling has started off the week losing ground against a basket of major currencies - most notably already losing 0.76% against the Dollar at the time of writing this post - this could still be off the back of much better than expected unemployment data accross the pond on Friday.

As always an interesting start to the week is expected on the markets for Sterling with a number of key releases not only for the U.K but also releases from overseas that may strengthen other currencies against the Pound - releases of note from now until Wednesday are as follows:

13:00pm Today - Trichets Speech.. Head of the European Central Bank Jean Claude Trichet will discuss current and future economic policies, any hint of future plans may cause volatility for the Euro.

17:00pm Today - Fed chairman Bernanke Speech.. As above any hint of future policies may lead to Dollar volatility.

Tuesday

09:30 - The industrial and manufacturing production data is released for the U.K - any changes to expectations could lead to minor movements for the Pound - major differences could lead to larger movements.

14:00pm - Bank of Canada interest rate decision - At present the interest rate in Canada is sat at 0.25% - no change to this figure is expected however investors will be looking out for any hints as to what the BOC are planning to do going forward.

23:30pm - Westpac Consumer Confidence for Australia - This data effectively gives an overview as to the general confidence of people in Australia - a positive reading should lead to AUD strength and also negative should lead to weakness.

Wednesday

A lot of data is out on Wednesday inclusive os Alistair darilg's pre budget report - the most important releases in my opinion are as follows:

00:01pm U.K Consumer confidence - As with the Australian release on Tuesday the consumer confidence for the U.K comes out - any reading higher than expected should lead to Sterling strength and lower potentially will bring weakness.

00:30 Trade balance - Australia.. This release shows the total amount of imports and exports for Australia and again could be a key market mover in the early hours of wednesday.

06:45 - Swiss Unemployment data - Another one for the early birds amoung us is the Swiss unemployment figures due at 06:45am - expected is a level of 4% and any change to this could bring movements for the CHF

07:00am - German CPI data - Key inflation data for Germany also comes out on Wednesday morning, with Germany seen as the largest economy in the Eurozone this can bring volatility to the Euro.

09:30 - Trade balance - U.K - As with the Autralian release above this can bring large market movements.

20:00pm RBNZ Interest rate decision - The reserve Bank of New Zealand release their interest rate decision - no change to rates is expeceted but should they hike as Australia have done of late one would expect serious NZD strength.





THIS IS A BRIEF SUMMARY OF TODAY'S REPORT - SHOULD YOU REQUIRE FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE DO NOT HESITATE TO CONTACT ME EITHER BY EMAILING HERE Email Me - OR CLICKING ON THE BANNER BELOW TO SEE TODAY'S FULL REPORT I will ensure I get back to you as soon as possible to discuss the options available to you. Click here to read the full report on our main website

If you have the need to send money overseas or bring money into the U.K and want the best exchange rates and a great service just click on the links below to go straight to our main site and click on the register now button to open a free no obligation trading facility quoting DANIEL WRIGHT as your point of contact.

I assist thousands of clients to send money overseas or receive money from overseas involving the following currencies - Please note I do not deal with cash it is bank to bank only!! AED AUD BHD CAD CHF CZK DKK EUR GBP HKD HUF INR ILS JPY KES KWD MAD MUR MXN NOK NZD OMR PLN SAR SEK SGD THB TRY USD ZAR
Have a great day and thanks for reading!

Daniel Wright

U.K Mortgage approvals slighty worse than expected - Business investment slightly better in early morning data Sterling forecast and report

Just a brief update on market movements this morning following the report earlier on - U.K mortgage approvals came out slightly worse than expected and business investment slightly better.

The two are not major market movers unless they are hugely different to predicitons however in ealry morning trading Sterling has lost ground against most major currencies.

Mervyn King is also speaking at present and we all know what generally tends to happen we he speaks..... Sterling weakness!

THIS IS A BRIEF SUMMARY OF TODAY'S REPORT - SHOULD YOU REQUIRE FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE DO NOT HESITATE TO CONTACT ME EITHER BY EMAILING HERE Email Me - OR CLICKING ON THE BANNER BELOW TO SEE TODAY'S FULL REPORT I will ensure I get back to you as soon as possible to discuss the options available to you. Click here to read the full report on our main website

If you have the need to send money overseas or bring money into the U.K and want the best exchange rates and a great service just click on the links below to go straight to our main site and click on the register now button to open a free no obligation trading facility quoting DANIEL WRIGHT as your point of contact.

Have a great day and thanks for reading!

Daniel Wright

Sterling report and forecast - exchange rate information for the Pound against Euro, Dollar, Swiss Franc, Australian & New Zealand Dollar and ZAR

Sterling report – Trading yesterday

Yesterday bought a relatively quiet day for the markets in stark contrast to what we have seen of late, with the high-low point of the day between Sterling and Euro being no more than 0.60% different and Sterling - Dollar experiencing no more than a 0.70% change -certainly different to what we have been used to throughout 2009 and important for those looking to exchange currency.

The losses Sterling made against many major currencies appear to be down to the potential of a hung parliament. A hung parliament is a situation whereby no particular political party has an outright majority which leads to periods of uncertainty on fiscal policies and many other factors including economic approach.

Political certainty is one of the four points of the currency compass which also includes economic stability, acts of terror and acts of god – all four of these effect the value of a currency and looking at the economic situation in the U.K over other economies alongside this matter Sterling may start to lose ground in the lead up the Christmas again this year.

Many investors will be eagerly awaiting the release of revised GDP figures tomorrow as mentioned in yesterday’s report, the revision is set to show a minor improvement and any change to this could bring major Sterling volatility.

The pattern over the past few months for the Pound has been taking two steps forward then dropping three steps back as I’m sure many of you are aware, so if you do have an upcoming currency requirement it may be prudent to take advantage of current rates before Sterling even has the chance to drop away again.

Busy day ahead for the Pound, Euro, Dollar and Swiss Franc

Today promises to be very interesting day on the markets, particularly for those of you with upcoming transfers to make that are keeping a keen eye on the current exchange rates.

Earlier this morning saw the release of GDP data for Germany at 07:00am, which came out exactly as expected so no major market movements have been seen off the back of this.

The rest of today is key so if you have any upcoming transfer involving any of the currencies mentioned then you should call your account manager here to discuss what effect the following data may have on your transfer.

At 09:00 we see Swiss unemployment data released so the CHF may well move off the back of this and then the U.K release mortgage approvals at 09:30am - A key indicator as to how the housing market in the U.K is fairing and this can have a large impact on the value of Sterling.

At 13:30pm the U.S take their turn and release their revised GDP figures in what is a huge day for the Dollar.... not only do they release GDP but on top of this we see Consumer confidence and housing price data at 15:00pm followed by the FOMC minutes from the previous interest rate decision at 19:00pm.

This could lead to large movements so if you do have an upcoming USD transaction whether it be buying or selling it is imperative you are in close contact with someone that can inform you of what is happening throughout the day.

Mervyn King and others also address a treasury committee today and traders eyes will be looking for indications on future plans as they release their latest inflation report, this could affect Sterling against all major currencies.

AUD, NZD & ZAR exchange rate movements

Many followers of these currencies will have noticed a fair bit of movement of late which I can personally place down to carry trading – carry trading is where an investor borrows money from a currency with a low interest rate (GBP, JPY) and invests it in one with a much higher interest rate (AUD, NZD, ZAR) therefore making their money on the return from the higher yielding currency


THIS IS A BRIEF SUMMARY OF TODAY'S REPORT - SHOULD YOU REQUIRE FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE DO NOT HESITATE TO CONTACT ME EITHER BY EMAILING HERE Email Me - OR CLICKING ON THE BANNER BELOW TO SEE TODAY'S FULL REPORT I will ensure I get back to you as soon as possible to discuss the options available to you. Click here to read the full report on our main website

If you have the need to send money overseas or bring money into the U.K and want the best exchange rates and a great service just click on the links below to go straight to our main site and click on the register now button to open a free no obligation trading facility quoting DANIEL WRIGHT as your point of contact.

Have a great day and thanks for reading!

Daniel Wright