The Pound Sterling remained close to a 2-month trough versus both the greenback and the Euro during London trade on Monday. Expectations that the Bank of England might be considering a negative interest rate environment as an option, coupled with a stalemate in the negotiations for the Brexit, are keeping the Pound within a tight trading band. With slightly more than half the month already gone, the Pound has lost 3.7% so far against the US Dollar. With those factors, and given the continuing fallout from the Coronavirus which is likely to have a profoundly negative affect on Sterling, analysts see a prolonged sentiment shift against the currency.
The GBP/USD was trading higher at $1.12124, a gain of 0.1934% as of 11:22 am in London; the pair has ranged from a trough of $1.20704 to a high of $1.21305. The EUR/GBP was trading lower at 0.8910 Pence, a loss of 0.3122%, and off the earlier low of 0.89077 Pence.
Markets to Watch UK Labor Data
With a light day ahead on the economic calendar, markets will focus on tomorrow's release of labor data from the UK. The Office of National Statistics will be releasing information on wages, as well as the claimant count change. The latest poll suggests that wages are likely to have fallen in the 3-month period to March, dipping to 2.7% and 2.6% (with and without bonus, respectively). Most notably, the claimant count is expected to be significantly higher, with estimates of 150,000 in April, up from 12,000 in March.