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Sterling boosted by UK Jobs Data

• Posted by Shyam Gokani in Uncategorised
• September 14, 2016
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Sterling rose this morning, boosted by data that showed resilience in Britain’s labour market to fallout from June’s Brexit vote.

The jobless rate in the three months to July was 4.9 percent, unchanged from the three months to June while the number of people in work rose by 174,000, the Office for National Statistics said.

Sterling rose to $1.3222, gaining 0.25 percent on the day and up from $1.3200 before the data was released. The euro was down 0.2 percent at 84.85 pence.

After a dip in inflation knocked the pound back yesterday, employment data will be looked to for further signs of how the UK economy will hold up against the risks generated by June’s vote to leave the European Union.

The pound has broadly stabilised in the past month, trading consistently above $1.30, but traders have begun to worry that there will be more political noise about the upcoming Brexit negotiations as leaders meet in Bratislava on Friday.

Although the string of positive data in recent weeks provided somewhat of a lifeline to sterling bulls, the lingering Brexit anxieties continue to cap gains on the upside.

Since then, with the head of the Bank of England leaving the door open to more monetary easing, and with Brexit negotiations back in the headlines after the British parliament returned from recess, sterling has shed almost 2 percent.

Since then, with BoE Governor Mark Carney leaving the door open to more monetary easing, sterling has shed nearly 2 percent.

The BoE, which makes a policy announcement on Thursday, is not expected to introduce new measures, having last month cut interest rates to record lows and reintroduced an asset-purchase programme.