The Great Britain pound jumped today, reaching the highest rate in more than five months versus the Japanese yen, after the report showed that the UK economy shrank last quarter on a quarterly basis, but expanded on an annual basis.
Britain’s gross domestic product fell 0.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011 from the previous three months, matching analysts’ forecast. That was the same rate of contraction as in the previous quarter. Year-on-year, GDP rose 0.7 percent. The UK economy grew 0.8 percent during 2011 as a whole.
The data was mixed, but that hasn’t deterred the pound’s rally. The UK currency struggled against the euro, but managed to rise. The weekly loss remained substantial, though. The performance of the sterling versus the dollar and the yen was clearer: a straightforward move to the upside. That means the currency erased its weekly loss versus the greenback and posted a big weekly gain against the yen.
GBP/USD climbed from 1.5741 to closed at 1.5876 after reaching 1.5898, the highest level since February 8, and GBP/JPY jumped from 125.92 to 128.90, while the daily high was 12895 — the highest rate since August 5. EUR/GBP rose from 0.8489 to 0.8505 (the highest since December 12), but retreated and closed at 0.8468.
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