Sterling holds its own against stronger dollar, trade optimism lends supports
Sterling ticked higher against the dollar on Thursday, one of the few major currencies to hold its own against the greenback which regained ground after weak U.S. data dragged it lower on Wednesday.
The pound was up 0.14% at $1.3574, while against the euro it was up 0.1% at 84.16 pence.
Sterling remains a touch away from a more than three-year high hit on May 26, underpinned by ongoing dollar weakness with the pound up over 8% this year.
Also helping is the fact the UK is the only country to have struck a trade deal with the U.S and was spared from higher U.S. steel and aluminium tariffs, though analysts question how beneficial those factors are.
"The trade deal does matter," said Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG Group.
"You might argue it's not a proper trade deal and that it doesn't solve all the problems, but at least it's a sign that there's a more compelling reason to hold the pound rather than be worrying about the euro," Beauchamp added.
The Bank of England (BoE) will meet on June 19 to deliver its next policy decision with market bets firmly on the monetary policy committee (MPC) keeping rates steady.
There had been expectations of a further 25 bps cut from the BoE at its June meeting but bets were slashed following weak economic data and a hotter-than-expected inflation read last month.
On Tuesday, Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey said he was sticking with a "gradual and careful" approach to cutting interest rates as global trade policy turmoil increasingly clouds the outlook.
Reassurance came on Wednesday with a survey showing Britain's services sector returned to tepid growth last month.
(Reporting by Lucy Raitano and Johann M Cherian, Editing by Ed Osmond)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The National
3 hours ago
- The National
TV art guru jailed for 2.5 years for deals with suspected Hezbollah financier
An art expert who appeared on a BBC auction show was jailed for two-and-a-half years on Friday after a series of deals with a suspected Hezbollah financier. Oghenochuko Ojiri, 53, also known as Ochuko, sold artwork worth around £140,000 to Nazem Ahmad, a man designated by US authorities for alleged laundering for the Lebanese group. A regular on the Bargain Hunt programme, Ojiri was arrested two years ago by officers from the UK's National Terrorist Financial Investigation Unit. The investigation centred on alleged terrorist financing and money laundering by Mr Ahmad, an art collector and diamond dealer. Mr Ahmad, 60, a dual Belgian- Lebanese citizen, is under sanction s by Britain and the US. He has been accused of using the UK's fine art market to run an international financing operation for Hezbollah which is proscribed in the UK as a terrorist organisation. The art dealer's connection to the investigation into Mr Ahmad was first revealed by The National on Thursday, when he was charged. Ojiri is known for his appearances on the BBC's Bargain Hunt and has also appeared on the BBC's Antiques Road Trip. Ojiri had admitted to eight charges of failing to disclose his dealings with Mr Ahmad, which took place between October 2020 and December 2021, contrary to the Terrorism Act 2000. Prosecutor Lyndon Harris told the court hearing in May that Ojiri 'engaged in sales of artwork to Nazem Ahmad, a suspected terrorist financier'. Following the introduction of new money laundering regulations in January 2020 that brought the art market under the supervision of UK Customs, Ojiri is said to have discussed the changes with a colleague, indicating awareness of the rules, he told the court. 'At the time of the transactions, Ojiri knew Mr Ahmad had been sanctioned in the US,' Mr Harris said. 'He accessed news reports about Mr Ahmad and engaged in conversations with others about that, which indicates that he had information about Mr Ahmad.' Mr Ahmad was first accused by the US Treasury in 2019 of laundering substantial amounts of money and being involved in the smuggling of 'blood diamonds' for Hezbollah. He was sanctioned, then in April 2024 charged by the US along with eight associates with offences relating to breaching sanctions regulations. Police swooped on the high-security depot near London's Heathrow Airport in 2024, taking away nearly two dozen works of art belonging to Mr Ahmad, which they believe would probably have funded Hezbollah.
Martechvibe
11 hours ago
- Martechvibe
Fullcast Acquires Commissionly
As part of the acquisition, Commissionly's product and team will be integrated into the Fullcast suite of solutions, with continued investment in both platforms. Topics News Share Share Fullcast Acquires Commissionly Whatsapp Linkedin Fullcast, the RevOps platform for end-to-end Go-to-Market (GTM) planning and execution, has announced the acquisition of Commissionly, a UK-based company specialising in cloud-based sales commission management. This acquisition marks a step forward in Fullcast's mission to unify every aspect of GTM operations, transforming it from a RevOps solution into a sales performance management platform. By incorporating Commissionly's automated commission tracking and compensation tools into Fullcast's RevOps platform, customers can align sales performance and incentive structures with territory planning, quota setting, and Go-to-Market execution. This integration helps remove operational silos that typically result in misaligned incentives, payment delays, and shadow accounting. 'Adding Commissionly's powerful commission engine makes Fullcast the only platform where GTM planning and sales performance execution truly live in one place,' said Ryan Westwood, CEO, Fullcast. 'This acquisition enables our customers to motivate, reward and drive performance with complete visibility and trust.' Commissionly has helped sales teams automate complex commission structures across industries. Its simple and intelligent cloud-based solutions are part of Fullcast's commitment to flexibility and scalability across growing Go-to-Market teams. 'Joining Fullcast is a natural evolution of our mission to help sales teams succeed through transparency and automation,' said Martin Baker, CEO, Commissionly. 'Together, we can offer companies a seamless experience, from designing territories and setting quotas to managing commissions and rewarding top performers.' As part of the acquisition, Commissionly's product and team will be integrated into the Fullcast suite of solutions, with continued investment in both platforms. Existing Commissionly customers will continue to receive full support and benefit from enhanced capabilities through the combined solution. 'We're thrilled to bring Commissionly into Fullcast. This will make it easier for teams to connect planning with performance and actually get paid for the work they do, faster and more accurately,' said Bala Balabaskaran, Co-Founder and CTO of Fullcast. ALSO READ:
The National
18 hours ago
- The National
Will Europe's shift on Israel's war in Gaza change anything?
Too little, too late. This was the sentiment echoed among critics in the international community after Europe started taking a new, critical stance on Israel's war in Gaza in recent weeks. For Palestinians actually in the strip, it is certainly too late, with the death toll from 19 months of war at more than 54,200. But what of the new stance itself? In late May, the EU announced it would launch a review of its relations with Israel. The move was backed by 17 of 27 states and could lead to a suspension in whole or in part of the EU-Israel agreement, the legal framework that governs their bilateral economic co-operation. In Germany, new Chancellor Friedrich Merz questioned the future of arms sales to Israel; in France, President Emmanuel Macron has been rallying global support to recognise Palestinian statehood; and in the UK, the government issued sanctions against several illegal Israeli settlers and paused trade negotiations. In this episode of Beyond the Headlines, host Nada AlTaher looks at the motives and timing of Europe's shifting position on Gaza and asks whether these measures will make any difference to the war. We hear from former German ambassador Heinrich Kreft and Hugh Lovatt, senior Mena policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations. Editor's note: We want to hear from you! Help us improve our podcasts by taking our two-minute listener survey. Click here.
