Sterling vs. Euro
Mercredi 12 octobre 2011
Last week saw GBP/EUR hit the highest level in 7 months, briefly breaking the €1.17 (Interbank) level. The gains were short lived though, and by the end of the week rates were around the €1.15 level, however still very close to the 7 month high considering it had been in the €1.13’s just several weeks ago. The volatility
within the Eurozone has continued with decisions made on Quantitative Easing (QE) and Moody’s downgrade of banks within Greece, Portugal and the UK.
The start of the week saw trading around the €1.16 level with everyone still waiting for news of whether the UK will be implementing more QE on Thursday. The GBP/EUR hit €1.17 as it was announced that Greece will miss its deficit reduction target, Wednesday also saw Moody’s downgrade of even more of Greece’s and Italy’s banks further increasing the chance of default. Poor construction data in the UK kept the GBP/EUR steady as everyone waited for the Bank of England’s decision on QE.
The revised GDP figures showed the economy is pretty much at a standstill, and has been now for 6 months.
As the BoE announced ÂŁ75 billion worth of QE at 12.00pm traders saw the GBP/EUR rate drop over 1% within a matter of minutes. The BoE hopes that through added QE the economy will get the much needed bump start as more people and investors are able to borrow and spend more to help stimulate economic growth and increase the strength of GBP.
Speaking at his last news conference before stepping down, ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet urged « banks to do all that is necessary to reinforce balance sheets » where needed.
The European Central Bank is offering unlimited new one-year emergency loans to banks to help steady the Eurozone. The ECB would also help the banks by spending 40bn Euros (ÂŁ35bn) buying assets from them known as covered bonds.
The end of the week saw Moody’s downgrade the credit rating of twelve UK financial firms including Lloyds, RBS, Nationwide, and Santander. Nine banks in Portugal were also downgraded further showing how closely linked we are to the single currency. The news sent bank shares lower, with RBS 3.8% off and Lloyds losing 3.36%. Even though we are now down from the highs seen earlier in the week, the GBP/EUR rate is still doing well compared to the end of August where we were around the 1.13 level. Even though there does seem to be added volatility and uncertainty, the fact is that exchange rates are currently still much better than they have been in the past and we are still hovering around a 6 month high.
If you need to buy or sell Euros, click below to contact us today and have a free consultation on how the current volatility in the markets may affect your currency purchase.
Source: foremost currency group – Making the most of your currency

Oui, Ă n’en pas douter, cette maison Ă 5 minutes du centre d’Albi a fait peu neuve. Une maison de famille joliment rĂ©novĂ©e et bien agencĂ©e avec les avantages du calme de la campagne et la proximitĂ© des commerces. 4 chambres spacieuses, 2 salles de bain, un salon de 33m2, une cuisine contemporaine Ă©quipĂ©e. Beau jardin et une belle vue.
Il arrive que nous vendions des fermes, des maisons, des propriĂ©tĂ©s jouissant d’un « patus ». Pour en expliquer le sens, plutĂ´t que de partir dans des dĂ©finitions bucoliques qu’une imagination trop fertile pourrait concevoir pour dĂ©crire la chose, nous nous reporterons avec bonheur Ă la dĂ©finition qu’en donne sobrement le site de WikipĂ©dia :
