Home Daily Commentaries Pound recovers as EU summit nears

Pound recovers as EU summit nears

Daily Currency Update

GBP - British PoundThe pound has recovered against the dollar in the last 12-24 hours, albeit there's been little by way of fresh Brexit headlines. May is due to meet both the French and German leaders today in an attempt to get them both onside before all EU 27 vote on the PM's request tomorrow to delay Brexit to 30th June. Meanwhile, a bill was passed in Parliament yesterday evening which means the PM is forced to request an extension should a deal not be agreed. But, it's already happening and so the reaction in markets to the bill passing was muted.Investors will continue to monitor Brexit headlines and moreover will be listening intently for any positive or negative rhetoric following May's talks with Merkel and Macron.

Key Movers

Oil hit a 5 month high overnight, which in turn has supported bids in the commodity currencies including the Canadian dollar. USD/CAD has fallen from 1.3380 and under the 1.33 figure over the last 24 hours - the oil track is a well trodden one for the CAD. The dollar is also a touch weaker this morning as investors await the much anticipated FOMC meeting minutes tomorrow night - the last meeting marked a major dovish shift in the Fed's policy stance. The ECB are also due to make their monetary policy announcement tomorrow and while there's very little chance of the central bank making a change it's likely that ECB President Draghi will reference weak data of late, and may even sound more dovish than markets are expecting.

Expected Ranges

  • GBP/USD: 1.2990 - 1.3145 ▲
  • GBP/EUR: 1.1550 - 1.1655 ▲
  • GBP/AUD: 1.8150 - 1.8360 ▼
  • GBP/NZD: 1.9240 - 1.9420 ▼
  • GBP/CAD: 1.7300 - 1.7430 ▼