Welcome to our latest currency report, where we have a mix of results to share with you. You may soon realise this was far from the best week we might have hoped for.
An overview of the currency markets for April 16th – April 20th, 2018
A good start to the week is always welcome, and we managed this against the US dollar last week. Opening on 1.4255, the British pound did well over the first two days, rising to 1.4321 by Tuesday evening. However, a dip on Wednesday wiped out all that progress, taking us down to 1.4221 instead. A slight recovery to 1.4236 the following day did little to allay our concerns. Indeed, by Friday night, the pound had suffered a significant loss, falling to close the week on 1.4050.
With that drop against the dollar, were we about to be faced with something similar against the euro as well? We opened trading on 1.1574 here but dropped to 1.1565 on day one. The pattern soon became very different to the one seen against the dollar, with an up-and-down format seen throughout the week. This meant the overall picture was most important, and in this way the pound did not differ. It suffered a notable loss here too, falling to 1.1414 by the time this challenging week was up.
Could we expect yet another fall in our position against the Hong Kong dollar then? We started the week on 11.190 and improved to 11.230 by the end of Monday. We edged further ahead to 11.242 the following day, but by now we knew better than to be too optimistic. The usual set of ups and downs we’d seen elsewhere followed here as well. By Friday evening, the British pound had lost ground against the Hong Kong dollar too, just as we had almost suspected it might. It closed the week on 11.022 here.
If the pound can buck the trend anywhere, it might just do so in New Zealand. Strangely, it followed the pattern seen elsewhere in terms of good and bad days, but overall the outcome was very different – refreshingly so, in fact. A starting exchange rate of 1.9332 and two promising days to begin with sent the pound to 1.9514 by Tuesday night. So, while we had two less satisfactory days to follow, coupled with one better one, the pound had done enough early on to prevent a loss overall. Instead, it finished the week on 1.9441.
Our final stop takes us to Australia. Here, we began trading on 1.8288 and enjoyed a rise over Monday and Tuesday that increased our exchange rate to 1.8439 by Tuesday evening. However, three poor performances followed that. While we’d started well, we hadn’t done enough to secure a good result, and Friday closed on 1.8243 against the Australian dollar.
Notable events in the world of currency
Another loss racked up against the Canadian dollar
An opening rate of 1.7918 dropped to 1.7757 by the time Friday night rolled around in this part of the world.
Another drop seen against the Swiss franc as well
The losses were hardly a surprise now, as we experienced another one against the Swiss franc, which pushed the pound from 1.3719 to 1.3663 last week.
More of the same against the Icelandic krona
Even the krona was too much for the pound last week. We dropped from 141.413 to 139.373 this time around.
There was ample reason to exhibit some concern over the state of the British pound last week. It seemed almost impossible to find any pleasing results while looking at the exchange rates. There may have been small wins to celebrate as the week began, but if we ever needed evidence that a trading week can finish in a very different position, this week provided it.
Let’s hope we can source some more promising news for you next week, as we see whether the British pound can recoup any of the early losses that occurred this week. Only time will provide the answer.