The pound received a welcome boost courtesy of its dominant professional services sector on Monday. UK private sector growth reached a six-month high, with the all-important services sector recording a score of 53.2 in March’s S&P Global UK purchasing managers’ index (PMI) study – the best result since last summer.
GBP/EUR was still only slightly improved over the course of Monday. GBP/USD was little changed and the euro’s losses against the US dollar were contained to less than half a cent. The pound now faces a nervous wait to see how markets react to tomorrow’s inflation report and spring statement.
The eurozone had its own PMI result to shout about. In the Hamburg Commercial Bank (HCOB) report, German manufacturing PMI came in above forecasts at 48.3 in March. That was in stark contrast to the UK’s manufacturing industry, which contracted by more than expected even as other sectors thrived.
It might not feel like it, but house price affordability returned to pre-pandemic levels last year, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). In 2024, the median house price was 7.7x the average annual wage as affordability improved in 289 of the 318 local authorities in England and Wales.
New Canadian prime minister Mark Carney has called a snap election for 28 April, labelling Donald Trump’s recent actions “the most significant crisis of our lifetime”. The Canadian dollar recorded daily advances over the pound and the US dollar, but has still fallen by almost 5% against the latter since October.
Speaking of Mr Trump, the US president has said he will impose a 25% tariff on all countries that import oil from Venezuela. Aside from potentially ruining that economy, the move could serve as a proxy for direct tariffs on India and China – big importers of Venezuelan oil.
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