There has been little movement of substance for sterling against the euro for three weeks now and it remains around 1% up on last month and 2% up on last year.
The pound is well over 6% stronger compared to last year against the US dollar, with the imminent drop in US interest rates and potential for recession mainly to blame for its sharp decline.
The kind of swing we have seen for GBP/USD, whether up or down, is probably more typical over a year than GBP/EUR’s recent stability.
If you speak to anyone in property in mainland Europe and the ‘prime’ regions for UK property, one of the big stories has been the arrival of US buyers over the past couple of years, boosted by a strong dollar. Let’s hope that these American buyers fixed their rate as soon as they committed to a property in the UK or eurozone, or the recent fall in the dollar will have left them needing to find many thousands more at the last minute.
Still, at least American mortgages look set to fall this week as the US Federal Reserve makes their long-awaited announcement on Wednesday. Will British home owners (and businesses) get a similar reprieve? The speculators are betting on no interest rate cut from the Bank of England on Thursday, but Wednesday’s inflation data may change all that.
So, lots to think about this week. You too, if committing to a large transaction in another currency, can take the risk of fast-moving exchange rates out of the equation, with a call to your account manager on 020 8108 5163.
