The Pound Sterling continued to slide versus both the Euro and the US Dollar after the latest economic news dented investor demand. According to the Markit Manufacturing Survey for August, the UK had a reading of 52.8, well off the 53.8 that had been expected from the recent polling of analysts and economists; moreover, the reading from July was lowered to 53.8 from 54.0.
As reported at 11:22 am (BST) in London, the GBP/USD was trading at $1.288, down 0.60%; the pair has ranged from a session trough of $1.2864 to a peak of $1.2969. The EUR/GBP is trading at 0.89675 Pence, up 0.14%; the pair earlier hit a peak of 0.90187 Pence before sliding lower while the session low is at 0.89530 Pence.
Eurozone PMIs a Concern
As regards the PMI reports for the manufacturing sector, the Eurozone fared only slightly better with a reading at 54.6, generally as forecast. The greater worry is that the individual economies which comprise the EU had disappointing outcomes. France saw its PMI reading at 53.5, below the expected 53.7, while Italy's came in at 50.1, below the predicted 51.1. More worrying is the drop in Germany's reading to 55.9, down from the 56.1 anticipated; as the Eurozone's economic power driver, any decline in manufacturing output is a concern for the EU area as a whole.