Euro Crisis

Fitch Ratings has downgraded Malta’s Long-term foreign and local currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDR) to ‘A’ from A+. The Outlook is Stable. The ratings agency has simultaneously affirmed Malta’s Country Ceiling at ‘AAA’ and Short-term foreign currency rating at ‘F1’. In a statement Fitch said “There has been significant fiscal slippage...

Pound Sterling While the Pound began the week trading in the region of multi-month highs against both the US Dollar and Euro, the British asset broadly softened on Thursday as an unexpected decline in UK retail sales dented investor confidence in the nation’s economic recovery. To ask a currency expert a question direct, click HERE […]

Pound Sterling The Pound spent most of the week softer against its peers as concerns over possible military action against Syria was the main driving force behind the markets. Tuesday’s session saw the Pound fall against the Euro following the release of positive data out of the Eurozone and as tensions over Syria saw investors […]

Pound Sterling The Pound spent most of the week higher against its major peers and on Monday it continued to ride higher against the US Dollar and Euro thanks to last week’s positive economic data releases. House price data released in the afternoon showed that prices had fallen for the first time in six-months in […]

Pound Sterling The Pound made a second weekly gain after the UK currency received support from a host of positive economic data releases. On Monday Sterling made gains against the Euro as data showed that British banks increased the number of mortgages being approved .The data added credence to the belief that the UK recovery […]

Pound Sterling – The Pound began the week on a positive note after economic data continued to support hopes that the UK economy is making a strong recovery. A better than expected services PMI climbed from 56.9 in June to 57.4 in July. To ask a currency expert a question direct, click HERE Or to […]

Look for the next few days, if not weeks or months, to be a bumpy ride for world markets.  While Mark Carney’s remarks today (see my ADVFN colleague Tom Frew’s remarks) will have some impact on the London Exchange, the whole world is reacting to signs that the Federal Reserve is on the verge of […]

Britain’s banks have provided a bevy of news for the first Monday in August.  And – surprise!- not all of it is bad.  Not that long ago, any story about UK banks could have been written in one word:  “Disaster.”  Actually, it’s been so bad for so long that “bank” and “disaster” in the same […]

Pound Sterling – At the start of the week the Pound saw little movement against its most traded peers, but did make gains against the US Dollar. The rise came after the Bank of England released data showing that lending to small UK firms hit a record high in June. To ask a currency expert a […]

Ratings agency downgrades Italian banks. Fitch Ratings has downgraded Banca Popolare di Sondrio’s (BPS) Long-term Issuer Default Ratings (IDR) to ‘BBB’ from ‘BBB+’, Banca Popolare dell’Emilia Romagna’s (BPER) to ‘BB+’ from ‘BBB and Banca Carige’s (Carige) to ‘BB’ from ‘BB+’. The agency has also placed...