Pound Crashes Against Strong US Dollar as Global Equities Crash

The  Sterling pound today fell against the  US dollar driven by  the  risk-off market sentiment that dominated global markets amid a  major equities sell-off. The  GBP/USD extended its losing streak for  the  third consecutive day and  printed new 2020 lows as  investors shrugged off the  stimulus package announced by  the  Bank of  England yesterday.
The  GBP/USD currency pair today fell from an  opening high of  1.2849 to  a  low of  1.2490 in  the  American session but was off these lows at  the  time of  writing.
The  currency pair headed lower today as  the  US Dollar Index made steady gains throughout the  day’s session to  hit a  high of  98.31, but had retraced some of  its profits at  the  time of  writing. Investors sold the  pound, ignoring the   £30 billion relief program announced by  the  BoE yesterday to  combat the  effects of  the  coronavirus pandemic. The  currency pair fell over 2% today as  investors sold riskier assets, including the  pound in  favor of  the  greenback. The  rising coronavirus cases in  the  UK also did not help the  pair as  the  government advised is citizens to  self-quarantine.
Investor expectations that the  US FOMC would cut rates a  second time this month kept the  dollar supported. The  release of  the  weak US producer price index report by  the  Bureau of  Labor Statistics had a  muted impact on  the  pair. The  upbeat US initial jobless claims report drove the  pair lower.
The  currency pair’s future performance is likely to  be affected by  geopolitical events and  tomorrow’s BoE minutes.
The  GBP/USD currency pair was trading at  1.2606 as  at  20:10 GMT, having fallen from a  high of  1.2849. The  GBP/JPY currency pair was trading at  132.40, having dropped from a  high of  134.23.

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