Though higher now, the Pound Sterling remains within striking distance of a 20-month trough, despite calls for another Brexit referendum by some politicians. The Prime Minister is likely to continue to have a deadlocked Parliament with the March deadline for the Brexit looming in the mirror. Theresa May has publicly stated that she is against a second referendum, saying it would be too divisive. Critics are divided in the possible outcome, however, with some agreeing with Ms. May and others suggesting that the risk of a hard Brexit would then be minimized. Regardless, FX traders are sitting on the sidelines on this one, with trade for the GBP/USD pair within a narrow trading band.
As reported at 11:39 am (GMT) in London, the GBP/USD was trading at $1.2624, up 0.30%; the pair has ranged from $1.2575 to $1.2631 in today's session. The EUR/GBP was trading at 0.8983 Pence, down 0.03%; the pair is moving off the session low of 0.89660 Pence while the peak was recorded at 0.89950 Pence.
Euro Higher Despite CPI
In the Eurozone, inflation data fell below expectations for November. Eurostat reported that personal CPI fell to 1.9% on a year-over-year basis, while Core CPI was flat at 1%. On a monthly basis, personal Core CPI was recorded at -0.3%, below the predicted -0.2%. Core inflation data strips out volatile components such as food and energy costs. The EUR/USD was trading at $1.1342, up 0.26%; the pair has ranged from $1.3001 to $1.3444 in this trading session.